6 min readJul 19, 2026 07:11 AM IST First published on: Jul 19, 2026 at 06:41 AM ISTTomorrow is the day that protesting cockroaches will march from Jantar Mantar to Parliament, so I have no choice but to write about the Cockroach Janata Party’s protest. I have said before in this column that they should be heard because they are raising important issues. They are right when they say that the education system is defunct and failing our future generations. They are right to demand that the man most accountable for the mess should resign. And, if you spend an afternoon wandering about Jantar Mantar these days, you will meet many young people who speak of the despondency and defeat spreading through the ranks of young Indians. This is true in the cities, and it is true in the villages. But nobody in the exalted echelons of Lutyens Delhi seems to be listening.This privileged enclave, in which only the most powerful Indians have always lived, is now occupied by a new class of people. They are not descended from the traditional ruling class. They despise us ‘elitists’ for having been born privileged. They pride themselves on being low of caste and humble of origin, so they should be able to better hear the voices of people who have been protesting in Jantar Mantar for more than two weeks. Judging from the silence of the Prime Minister and his ministers, it appears they have chosen to remain deaf and to allow their battle to be fought by their own cockroach warriors on social media.