There has been a lot of anger and backlash on social media after Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant’s alleged “Cockroach” and “Parasite” remarks about unemployed youth and activists during the hearing of a case.
SNPNEWS.IN News (Gurmail Kamboj): On May 15, 2026, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalaya Bagchi was hearing a petition filed by a lawyer seeking ‘Senior Advocate’ status.
Expressing displeasure over the lawyer’s conduct and social media posts during the hearing, the Chief Justice said, “There are already parasites in the society who attack the system… Some youth are like cockroaches, who when they do not get any employment, start attacking everyone by becoming media, social media or RTI activists.”
The court also questioned the qualifications of several alleged lawyers roaming around Delhi in black robes and also said that a CBI inquiry should be conducted into this.
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As soon as the CJI’s comment went viral, there was huge outrage among the youth, lawyers and the general public, with the youth finding a unique way to express their anger on social media. After a campaign started by a student on Twitter as a joke, a page named ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ (CJP) was created, which was joined by thousands of youth within a few hours.
Hashtags like #ProudCockroach and #MainBhiCockroach started trending on the internet. The youth raised the question that if it is wrong to seek employment or question the system in the country, then they accept this name.
People wrote that the youth are already troubled due to problems like paper leaks, unemployment and corruption in the country, in such a situation, the use of such language by the country’s highest court is against the dignity of the constitutional office.
After the all-round siege and increasing controversy, on 16 May 2026, Chief Justice Surya Kant issued an official statement and cleared himself, saying that a section of the media had misrepresented his verbal comments. The CJI clarified that his comment was not against the honest unemployed youth of the country. He was only condemning those people who are harming the system by entering the legal profession, media or social activism with the help of fake and bogus degrees.
He described the Indian youth as the ‘pillars’ of the country’s development and said that he has great respect for the country’s younger generation.
Despite the CJI’s clearance, the debate on social media regarding the right to ask questions in a democracy and the decency of judicial language continues.