Days after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) called off its 37-day sit-in at Jantar Mantar, senior Supreme Court advocate and BJP Rajya Sabha MP Mahesh Jethmalani has stirred a fresh controversy, accusing the movement's leadership of celebrating with music and dancing at a Delhi hotel even as the capital was still reeling from days of street clashes.

In a sharply worded post on social media, Jethmalani said the CJP leadership had thrown a "victory party" at a hotel and questioned the optics of "so-called youth activists" switching on music and dancing so soon after violence had gripped Delhi. He went further, raising a pointed question about the financial backing of the weeks-long agitation, asking who paid for the travel, food, accommodation, equipment and logistics of the protesters and who financed the people who, in his words, kept the city "on the boil".

Also Read: Harsh Goenka trolls Galgotias University again, says it should 'showcase' China's new all-terrain robodog capable of climbing rocky slopes, racing across difficult ground

— JethmalaniM (@JethmalaniM)

37-Days CJP Protest That Shook the Capital

The CJP, a youth-led movement that grew out of anger over a remark by a top judicial functionary comparing unemployed young Indians to "cockroaches", had camped at Jantar Mantar for over a month, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper-leak controversy and alleged CBSE evaluation irregularities.

The agitation turned violent on July 20, when thousands of protesters attempting to march towards Parliament clashed with the police. Visuals of baton charges, tear-gas shells and injured demonstrators went viral, drawing sharp criticism of the police response, even as Delhi Police maintained that force was necessary after protesters defied prohibitory orders. Both sides reported injuries in the clashes.

Days later, Pradhan announced his resignation, saying he did not want the situation to be exploited by "anti-national forces." Following this, CJP leaders declared victory and announced the withdrawal of their agitation on July 26, after a meeting with Union Ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh. The government agreed to CJP demands: Pradhan's resignation, compensation for the families of students who had died by suicide amid the exam-related turmoil, and the withdrawal of FIRs filed against protesters in Delhi and BJP-ruled states. A follow-up meeting on broader education reforms was also scheduled for four weeks later.

The announcement triggered scenes of celebration at Jantar Mantar, with protesters dancing and chanting late into the night before the site was cleared.

Jethmalani's Charge

It is against this backdrop that Jethmalani's remarks have landed. His post effectively raises two separate allegations: first, that celebrating with music and dancing at a hotel, so soon after a violent confrontation that left both protesters and policemen injured, reflects poorly on the movement's leadership; and second, the more serious charge, a demand for transparency on who bankrolled the month-long agitation, from daily logistics to equipment.

Questions over the funding of large-scale, sustained protest movements are not new to Indian politics, and such allegations have previously been levelled against various citizen-led and student agitations by leaders across the political spectrum.

Also Read: Who is Jadumani Singh? Manipuri boxer who dedicated his Commonwealth Games victory over Pakistan to Kargil War heroes

There has been no official response yet from CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke or the movement's spokespersons to Jethmalani's specific allegations.

The CJP's success in securing Pradhan's resignation has already been described by analysts as a significant setback for the government and a dent in its image of firm control over public dissent. With the movement having agreed to reconvene talks on broader reforms in a month, Jethmalani's questions on funding could well shape the narrative in the run-up to that next round, with the government's camp likely to press for answers even as CJP leaders look to consolidate their momentum.