India's viral 'Cockroach' party has millions of followers. What investors need to know

AAP councillors protest against the leak of undergraduate examination papers during the House meeting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on May 25, 2026 in New Delhi, India. Sonu Mehta | Hindustan Times | Getty Images A youth political movement in India that has gone viral on social media — and that has a cockroach as its mascot — will face its first offline popularity test on Saturday as it plans a protest in New Delhi. Within weeks of its launch in mid-May, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) amassed over 22 million followers on Instagram . The pseudo-political CJP was launched on May 16 by political communications strategist and Boston university student Abhijeet Dipke in response to comments by India's Chief Justice Surya Kant calling some unemployed youngsters' "parasites" and "cockroaches" during a courtroom hearing. The CJP claims to have more than a million members and describes itself on its website as the "voice of the lazy and unemployed." But experts said there is little evidence of on-ground support for the mock party, adding that the scale of protest at the weekend would determine if the movement would be seen as a warning sign or a market-moving event. Similar movements led by disgruntled youth on social media in Nepal , Bangladesh , and, more recently, Indonesia have disrupted economic activity and threatened political stability. In some cases, it has also led to the ouster of the ruling party. …