Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), has moved the Delhi High Court (HC), to challenge the government’s decision to block the party’s X account under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The petition comes after the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) blocked the CJP’s X account, its website, and its backup X account within ten days of its launch. Scammers also exploited the movement’s viral reach through phishing links and impersonation accounts.

Source: MediaNama

Detailed timeline:

1. May 15, 2026: Chief Justice of India Surya Kant compares some unemployed youth to “cockroaches” and “parasites of society” during a Supreme Court hearing on fake professional credentials, according to The Wire. He later said his remarks targeted people using fake degrees, not India’s youth broadly.
2. May 16, 2026: Abhijeet Dipke launches cockroachjantaparty.org and X account @CJP_2029.
3. May 16-21, 2026: The CJP’s Instagram account surpasses the BJP’s 8.7 million Instagram followers within four days of launch, reaching 10.9 million followers by May 21, over 14 million by May 22, and 22.8 million as of May 26. The website records 10 lakh membership signups and 6 lakh signatures on a petition demanding Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, per Dipke’s post.
4. May 21, 2026: MeitY directs X to withhold @CJP_2029 under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, citing Intelligence Bureau (IB) inputs on national security. No public order is issued. The blocking order remains confidential under Rule 16 of the Information Technology (IT) Blocking Rules. A senior government official, speaking anonymously, told The Wire: “MeitY received an input from the IB to block the X account of Cockroach Janta Party, citing that it posed a threat to the sovereignty of India. In particular, the concern stemmed from the fact that the account’s content was gaining traction among young people.” Dipke posts on X: “Within 4 days the account got banned because it got more than 200K following.” He launches a backup account @Cockroachisback, which gains nearly 200,000 followers before MeitY took it down on May 23.
5. May 22, 2026: Ludhiana Police and Punjab Police issue public advisories warning citizens against scammers circulating phishing links on WhatsApp under the CJP name. Clicking the links compromises the victim’s phone and transfers banking details to scammers.
6. May 23, 2026:
   • Website blocked: MeitY blocks cockroachjantaparty.org. Dipke posts on X: “The government has taken down our iconic website. Why is the government so scared of cockroaches?” As of May 26, the website is back up.
   • Instagram hacked: Dipke posts that hackers had compromised the CJP’s official Instagram page and his personal Instagram. Backup X account @Cockroachisback is also taken down. “Please note that we currently do not have access to any of our platforms. Any post made after this should not be considered an official statement from the Cockroach Janta Party.”
   • Fake impersonation account: Dipke alleges that @Cockroach4India impersonates the CJP and, without providing evidence, claims that the BJP IT Cell created the account. Trademark squatting: Three parties filed trademark applications for “Cockroach Janta Party,” The Week reported. None of the filings is by Dipke.
   • Dipke’s response (X): “You can hack and withhold the accounts but you cannot hack this movement. We are not going to stop and we will keep raising our voice against this autocracy. Every attack makes cockroaches stronger.”
7. May 25, 2026: A petitioner files a Supreme Court PIL seeking a CBI investigation into the commercial exploitation of CJP-linked courtroom proceedings, alleging someone monetised and circulated clipped audio without context. Dipke filed a petition in the Delhi HC challenging the Section 69A blocking order. The Delhi HC is expected to hear the petition this week.

Why this matters:

• Section 69A opacity: MeitY issued no public justification. “National security” is the same ground the government cites for blocking journalists and satirists. MediaNama has tracked multiple accounts that have been withheld on similar grounds since February 2026.
• Enforcement beyond social media: MeitY’s blocking of the website, separate from the X account withholding, shows Section 69A enforcement extending to web infrastructure alongside social media accounts.
• Regulatory gap on phishing: Ludhiana Police issued its phishing advisory within one day of the X account being withheld, but only reactively, not preventively. No platform or regulator flagged the coordinated phishing before scammers targeted citizens.

Also read:

• X withholds Cockroach Janta Party account in India days after launch
• Section 69A crackdown: Multiple X accounts withheld in India in response to legal demands
• X Users Report Posts Withheld In India Under Section 69A, No Reasons Given