Supporters of India's youth-led Cockroach movement said Tuesday they will not leave their protest site in New Delhi, one day after police used tear gas and batons to break up thousands of demonstrators who tried to march toward Parliament.
Hundreds of protesters remained camped at Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site in the capital, under heavy police presence. According to NPR, the demonstrators are calling for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged failures in India's national examination system, including exam leaks.
"We are going to continue our protest," said Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, which emerged just two months ago.
The movement draws students, professionals and families and represents a rare direct public challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in its third term. Delhi Police said nearly 180 people were injured in Monday's crackdown, including 118 security personnel and 60 protesters. Video of officers beating demonstrators and dragging them away spread widely on social media, showing young protesters crying and pleading with officers not to hit them.
Sona Bisht, a 20-year-old student who was at the protest, said the confrontation only hardened her resolve. "If the government thinks that doing this with Gen Z, they can stop us, then that won't happen. We are here talking about education, talking about securing our future. And till the time our demands are not met, we will not move from here," she said.
The movement gained momentum over the weekend after prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk, whose three-week hunger strike has become a symbol of the protests, was forcibly taken to a hospital by police.
Also Tuesday, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi and dozens of lawmakers from his Congress party staged a sit-in outside Modi's residence. Several were seen fastening zip ties around their wrists. Gandhi said they were there to "demand answers from him for the brutalities against young students yesterday."
After nearly a month of silence, the government made its first apparent move toward dialogue Monday, when a senior minister met with movement representatives. The talks did not ease tensions. Movement leaders said they wanted concrete action, including Pradhan's resignation, examination reforms and compensation for families of students who died by suicide after alleged exam irregularities.
Dipke accused authorities of acting in bad faith, saying police launched a baton charge after protesters had been invited to talks.
