From a Chief Justice's slur to 18.5 million Instagram followers. From launch to banned-on-X in 5 days. This is how it happened.
In the Supreme Court, India's Chief Justice Surya Kant calls unemployed Indian youth "cockroaches" and "parasites of society."
Abhijeet Dipke, 30, ex-AAP comms strategist, launches the Cockroach Janta Party as a satirical political movement. The internet detonates.
11 million followers in 3 days. 350,000 Google Form signups. Mahua Moitra, Kirti Azad, Sabeer Bhatia all back the movement.
16M+ followers — bigger than BJP and Congress. X (Twitter) withholds CJP's official account in India hours later. Dipke launches @Cockroachisback. Quote: "Cockroaches don't die."
Still climbing. State-wise CJP chapters. Mainstream press coverage in Al Jazeera, ABC News, Deccan Herald, The Print. This is where you come in.
Like ARMY is to BTS. Like Beliebers to Bieber. We're the army (sena) — independent supporter merchandise for a movement that captured a generation.
Wearing Cockroach Sena gear is a public declaration: "I'm with the 18.5 million. I'm with the youth they tried to call parasites."
This is a for-profit business. Margins go to: paying our team, manufacturing the next drop, growing the brand.
Future drops will include collaborations with the movement's official chapters and contributions to youth unemployment causes. The Sena will know exactly where every rupee goes.