We were all shocked and deeply saddened when on May 15, the honourable Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant, remarked during a court hearing: “There are already some parasites who attack the system and you also want to join them. There are some youngsters who are like cockroaches, who are unemployed… some go to the media, some to social media, some become right to information (RTI) activists and then they start attacking everyone.”Words that shocked a nationThe comment immediately triggered outrage across the country, with people calling out the harsh language that no chief justice has used in open court before. Justice Surya Kant has previously made multiple remarks perceived as unfairly supportive to the government, however, to portray dissent as a grave sin and to describe unemployed youth in derogatory terms was truly objectionable. Although many were already familiar with his impulsive observations in cases concerning the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, few could have imagined the country’s highest judicial authority making such an inappropriate statement.A generation ignoredA look at statistics makes it clear why describing unemployed youth as “cockroaches” and “parasites” is wholly unacceptable. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), employment in India is stagnating, with a steadily rising unemployment rate in urban areas, as of June 2, 2026. The think tank puts the unemployment rate at 6.85%, emphasising a concerning decline in labour force participation. This is not an aberration, rather a continuing trend. A year back, in June 2025, the government’s monthly Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) had put India’s unemployment rate at 5.6%, an increase from the previous month’s 5.1%. The recently published State of Working India 2026 report by Azim Premji University states that 67% of unemployed youth today are graduates, compared to just 32% in 2004. The report paints a troubling picture of the widening gap between educational attainment and job creation. India has 367 million young people between the ages 15 and 29, nearly one-third of its working-age population. The report shows that roughly 263 million are currently outside the education system due to financial constraints and require employment opportunities immediately.India is among the youngest economies in the world, with a median age of 28 years. It is this generation that will be expected to sustain the country’s economy in the future, so that non-productive elderly population aged above 65 years can live with dignity and security. This is India’s demographic dividend, envied by several nations around the world. Nevertheless, because of a highly unequal and imbalanced economy that has failed to harness this potential, the demographic advantage is increasingly at risk of becoming a burden.Economists warn that India’s demographic dividend will begin to diminish after 2030. Therefore, the pace of employment generation has become even more critical. The transition from education to employment is currently India’s greatest challenge. The Azim Premji University report notes that unemployment among those aged between 15 and 25 is nearly 40%, while among those aged 25-29 it is nearly 20%. More alarming is the rate of unemployment among graduates. Since 1983, this figure has broadly remained between 35-40%. However, while educational participation has increased significantly over the past four decades, reaching 73%, employment prospects for educated youth have become increasingly dire.If we look at one band below this frustrated unemployed youth population, we encounter an even more disturbing reality that points to a major impending crisis. The recently released Sixth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) shows that child malnutrition in India stood at a significant 32% in 2023-24, virtually unchanged from NFHS-5 (2019-21). More concerning still, it is substantially worse than the 20-22% figure recorded in some of the poorest sub-Saharan African countries. In a country where one in every three children suffers from malnutrition, how will children, when they grow into physically weaker young adults, compete in an increasingly demanding and competitive world?The economic disparityOn the other hand, enormous wealth continues to accumulate and circulate within a limited elite class. According to a report by the Hindustan Times Mukesh Ambani’s wealth quadrupled between 2014 and 2026, rising from Rs 1.65 lakh crore to Rs 8.10 lakh crore. Additionally, Gautam Adani’s market value increased exponentially during this period, making him one of the fastest-growing billionaires globally. His net worth rose from Rs 67,000 crore in 2014, when he flew the then prime minister designate Narendra Modi in his private jet to Delhi, to Rs 8.5 lakh crore in 2026. India’s current model of jobless economic growth undoubtedly increases capital accumulation, yet neither the government nor the wealthy appear to bear responsibility for ensuring ordinary people’s livelihoods. Despite understanding the situation, policymakers do little to compel the creation of jobs. Instead, they seem content merely distributing free rice and wheat. Employment generation has slowed so dramatically that the long-standing migration of workers from villages to cities has begun to reverse. Various reports suggest that millions of unskilled and semi-skilled workers have left cities and returned to villages, surviving through agriculture and casual work. Such a reversal represents a profound setback for any nation.Regardless, there is remarkably little public discussion on this crisis. Political attention is increasingly devoted to fuelling religious divides, putting particular communities “in their place”. Courts seldom appear to take suo motu cognisance of these hardships and neither are there many examples of officials being directed to take positive corrective action. One might have hoped, when governments failed in securing the national interests, that courts would intervene and ensure the benefits of India’s economic growth are not confined to a small privileged class. Yet, over the past decade, we have seen no landmark judgments concerning the right to employment, persisting injustice towards the youth or workers’ rights. This is genuinely disappointing.Rather, we hear hurtful and disparaging remarks from the occupant of the country’s highest judicial office, remarks that inevitably set an example for the entire judiciary. There was not one word of empathy, but an undisguised annoyance and a painful indifference towards unemployment itself, as though people were somehow responsible for their plight instead of unfortunate victims of a flawed system.One expected courts to remind the central government of the education system’s continual failure impacting vast numbers of young people. However, those who raise concerns on behalf of the youth were subjected to ridicule by the CJI – comments arguably beyond the scope of judicial propriety. Hopefully, in the future, the CJI will recuse himself from hearing matters involving this constituency. Large sections of the Indian media expressed outrage over the insulting comments and few were satisfied by the explanation offered the next day regarding his usage of the word “cockroaches,” or what he intended to refer as “agitators.”Cockroaches fight backAs public anger spread, political communications strategist Abhijit Dipke launched the viral satirical Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on May 16. A postgraduate in public relations from Boston University, Dipke has previously worked on digital campaigns for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). He sought to encourage unemployed, frustrated and angry Indian youth to embrace the insult, transforming the term “cockroach” into a symbol of resistance against structural problems like unemployment and paper leaks. The movement quickly attracted millions of followers and generated enormous attention on social media, while also provoking controversy. Its growth was astonishingly rapid: within four days, it reportedly grew from zero to over ten million followers. By May 23, the CJP’s Instagram following had reached nearly 23 million, while its presence on X exceeded 200,000 followers. At one point, these numbers reportedly surpassed the social media followings of established political parties such as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Indian National Congress.The government subsequently attacked the movement, ordering the removal of its campaign website from the internet. Ironically, this only increased public interest. Nevertheless, there is little doubt that Dipke’s online initiative resonated deeply with millions of frustrated and disillusioned young Indians.Sociologists argue that frustration among the youth and other ordinary citizens has risen sharply in recent years. It is dangerous when people lose faith in governments, political parties and even the judiciary. In this view, an eruption of public anger was perhaps inevitable. Increasingly, India appears to have become a controlled environment in which meaningful debate, the kind seen under the tenures of Jawaharlal Nehru, P.V. Narasimha Rao, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh, has diminished considerably.Today, only large mass movements succeed in attracting the ruling establishment attention, that too occasionally. The farmers’ protests shook Delhi and its surrounding regions for months in 2020-21 until the government was compelled to retreat. In Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, established political orders eventually collapsed following widespread public uprisings by angry youth, often accompanied by enormous destruction and loss of life.No one wishes to see a similar scenario in India. But, it can only be avoided if the country’s ruling government recognises the deep-rooted extent of the youth’s frustration. If the existing system fails to absorb and accommodate this dynamic population, the entire structure may face a crisis from which recovery could prove impossible.What are the next stepsPublic anger and dissatisfaction are widespread and satire has become a powerful means of exposing those in authority. The digital reach of CJP is undeniably impressive. However, it still lacks the organisational infrastructure necessary to convert online support into meaningful action. Change does not emerge simply from highly visible expressions of frustration on social media.Ashok Swain’s book Struggle Against the State is worth noting in this regard. Unless digital anger is transformed into organised activity in cities, workplaces, educational institutions and public spaces, it will be impossible to build a durable and disciplined political movement based solely on humour and satire. The CJP may merely remain a short-lived cyber phenomenon before fading away. Therefore, if this anger is to produce positive change, it must evolve into a strategic programme of action. Organisational strength and networks remain indispensable. Another possibility is that the movement, or sections of the youth inspired by it, may eventually organise and take to the streets. Governments are programmed to not bother about abstract dissatisfaction alone. Street level protests, conversely, require far greater effort than the digital and call for a bold willingness to confront the formidable resistance that real-world political action encounters. The first signs of this progress were visible in the last few days at the mass protests at Jantar Mantar, Delhi, on Saturday (June 6). This step needs to be replicated in every town of the country for the movement to metamorphose into a veritable challenge to the failing establishment. Ground-level protests and mass movements almost always face repression, and thus, must endure significant hardships to survive.Along with holding its first public campaign, CJP has appealed to citizens to document everyday civic problems in their neighbourhoods, such as potholes, broken streetlights and overflowing garbage, and post photographic evidence online. The party says it will amplify these complaints and pressure authorities into taking action. However, as noted earlier, a movement cannot rely solely on digital content, memes, audiovisual material and satire. This initiative has largely been confined to the online sphere and can only supplement restricted physical presence, unless organised public mobilisation and a transparent structure are prioritised. Right now, a core leadership group appears capable of articulating clear, specific and transformative demands with an effective programme of action. This leadership needs to inspire diverse groups and mass movements, holding them together under a common umbrella despite differences in views and tactics. Dipke must remember that Arvind Kejriwal failed when he hijacked a broad-based groundswell and straitjacketed it, brooking no internal dissent.History is unfolding before our eyes. Let us see what fate has in store, whether it will be a six or merely a duck.Jawhar Sircar is a former Rajya Sabha MP of the Trinamool Congress. He was earlier secretary, Government of India, and CEO of Prasar Bharati.