Cockroach Janta Party protest: Sonam Wangchuk sets June 27 deadline, threatens hunger strike

The Cockroach Janta Party organised its second protest in Delhi at Jantar Mantar on Saturday, to demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged mismanagement in the conduct of competitive exams.

During the protest, Ladakh activist Sonam Wangchuk said he would launch an indefinite fast if the government does not take responsibility for alleged irregularities in the education system by June 27.

Hundreds of protesters who had gathered at the site shouted “Go Pradhan Go” while banging plates and spoons. Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, said that doing so would help remove the “virus in the education system named Dharmendra Pradhan” from office.

Go Pradhan Go! pic.twitter.com/FyF7DWEvMz— Cockroach is Back (@Cockroachisback) June 20, 2026

Dipke’s remarks were an apparent dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s March 2020 appeal asking Indians to clap and bang utensils from their homes to express gratitude to healthcare workers and others involved in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. While the government did not claim that the exercise would eliminate the coronavirus, misinformation and rumours were shared on social media suggesting that the act could help destroy the virus.

The protest took place a day before the re-examination for the undergraduate National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for medical college admissions, which...

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