‘Will be taken to Tihar’: CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke fears arrest on landing in Delhi after Govt action on X handle
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the satirical political campaign ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ (CJP), has said he fears being arrested the moment he lands in Delhi. Dipke
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the satirical political campaign ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ (CJP), has said he fears being arrested the moment he lands in Delhi. Dipke, whose CJP has taken the internet by storm, is currently based in the US, where he studied public relations. Dipke, 30, spoke to independent news platform Red Mike and said he plans to return to India next month. Also Read | Why Govt asked X to withhold Cockroach Janta Party's account "I just had my graduation day. I am planning to be back in India next month. And going by the pattern, I am sure that the moment I land at Delhi airport, I will be taken by Delhi Police and taken to Tihar," Dipke told Saurabh Shukla in the interview. Dipke's remarks came soon after Cockroach Janta Party's X handle, with over 200,000 followers, was withheld on 21 May, five days after it was formed. The campaign created a new handle with a different name ‘Cockroach is Back’ which has got about 144k followers within 24 hours. ‘ security concerns’ The action against the earlier handle by Union government came after the Intelligence Bureau (IB) raised “national security concerns”,The Indian Expressreported today, citing a senior government official. According to the report, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) asked X to withhold the satirical accountunder Section 69 (A) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The official added that the input to do so came from IB, as the central agency cited a threat to the sovereignty of India.
Section 69 (A) of the Information Technology Act empowers the Central government to direct intermediaries (such as internet service providers, social media platforms, and web hosts) to block public access to online information or websites. The CJP campaign came in response to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, during oral observation, allegedly described young, unemployed Indians as ‘cockroaches.’ The meteoric rise of satirical digital outfit CJP on social media has left the parents of its founder, overwhelmed by fears that he could land in trouble or even face arrest. The outfit, now popular as CJP, has garnered over 19 million followers on Instagram since it was founded barely a week ago by Boston University student Dipke. The CJP's Instagram follower count has surpassed mainstream political parties including the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress party. Parents lost sleep Dipke's parents Bhagwan and Anita Dipke, who live in Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, told a Marathi news channel on 21 May that they were not keen on letting their son enter politics. The parents said they have lost their sleep after learning about Abhijeet's move. Cockroach Janata Party, according to Dipke, was born following a controversy over Chief Justice of India Surya Kant using the terms "parasites" and "cockroaches" while pulling up a lawyer for his plea seeking senior designation. Also Read | Cockroach Janta Party’s X account withheld in India Though the later clarified that he was misquoted and his remarks were directed specifically at individuals entering the legal profession through "fake and bogus degrees", the CJP, with the insect as its symbol, took the social media by storm.
"If we look at politics nowadays, fear is natural, no matter how many followers he has. In one of his interviews, he himself expressed fear of being arrested after returning to India. We read about such incidents in newspapers," said Bhagwan Dipke. Abhijeet's mother Anita said she would want her son to stay away from politics and instead focus on getting a job. "We just want him to come home safely. Whether he continues in politics will be his decision, but we do not want him to pursue it. I do not know whether he will listen to us or not. I will not support him in this. I am worried about him," she told the channel. Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of Cockroach Janta Party has been facing casteist remarks on social media after he revealed he was a Dalit in a tweet on Thursday. Stand on Dalit Issues I hope that will answer all your questions. While there has been a massive support for CJP, some users on social media asked if it will remain a satire or the party will come into reality. A user, Shut Up Counsel, also raised questions on CJP’s stand on Dalit issues. An hour later, Dipke, who has been actively posting and replying to posts and reels on social media, said, “I am a Dalit myself. I hope that will answer all your questions. BJP MP asks questions on funding BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Friday targeted Dipke over CJP, alleging that he is linked to the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party and questioning the funding behind his reported trip to Boston, while also alleging possible foreign involvement.
In a post shared on X, Dubey accused the AAP of attempting to seek support from foreign entities through Abhijeet Dipke and questioned the alleged foreign funding behind his activities. Also Read | After beating BJP, Cockroach Janta Party surpasses Congress on Instagram "Abhijeet Dipke is a worker of the Aam Aadmi Party, that is, of Arvind Kejriwal ji. Who funded his trip to Boston? Is the Soros Foundation covering the expenses for his stay and food? This is a warning for the opposition: Will you take help from foreign powers to break the country?" Dubey. In the Red Mike interview, Dipke was asked a question on funding. “I want to tell those who think I have funding to please get me some so that I can pay my pending education loan," he said.
The BriefWire