Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Saturday (November 7) said he would continue carrying the national flag across the country despite arrests, while accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to control people’s food habits, personal relationships and voting rights.
The protest rally, organised as part of the CJP’s ‘Jantar Mantar at Kochi’ campaign, began at Marine Drive in Kochi. Led by actor-activist Prakash Raj alongside Dipke, the demonstration demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Heavy police personnel were deployed along the rally route to regulate traffic and prevent road blockades.
Dipke’s message
Addressing the crowd, Dipke said the fight would continue until an independent and impartial electoral system was established in the country. Referring to his recent arrest in Delhi alongside CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka for entering Jantar Mantar with the national flag — as well as his detention ahead of a planned Tiranga March — he insisted he would not be deterred.
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“I was sent behind bars for raising this Tricolour. Saurav and Ashu, my two brothers, were also sent behind bars for raising it. The last time this happened in India was when we were ruled by the British,” he said, comparing the Modi government to British rule.
“I want to tell Narendra Modi that I will carry this Tricolour everywhere. If you want to arrest me, you can arrest me in Delhi, Maharashtra, Keralam or Tamil Nadu. Arrest me from every part of the country, but I will come back again and raise this Tricolour.”
Mass disenfranchisement
Ahead of the rally, speaking to reporters at the airport, Dipke alleged that votes were being systematically erased across the entire country during the SIR exercise.
“Votes are being deleted across the country. There is not even a single state where votes are not being deleted,” he said. Claiming that over 13 crore voters—representing roughly 13 to 14 per cent of the registered vote share—had been removed, he questioned the legitimacy of upcoming polls: “How can we expect that these elections are being conducted free and fair when you erase more than 13 crore voters?”
He further alleged that the present dispensation was attempting to restrict fundamental personal freedoms. “They first wanted to control what you eat, then whom you can marry and love, and now they have come to a point where they want to control whom you vote for,” he added.
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Dipke also raised concerns over electoral impartiality by pointing to the appointment of a former Keralam Chief Electoral Officer as secretary to the Keralam Chief Minister, citing a similar past instance in West Bengal where an election commissioner was appointed chief secretary following a BJP victory.
Ideological roots and youth support
Highlighting the party’s backing in the region, Dipke expressed confidence in a strong turnout, noting that CJP’s internal database showed its largest base of registered members belonged to Keralam. In a simultaneous post on X, the CJP reinforced its stance with the slogan: “Gyanesh Kumar Must Go!”
Dipke said that India was founded on the ideals of three iconic figures — describing Mahatma Gandhi as the soul of India, BR Ambedkar as its backbone, and Jawaharlal Nehru as its mind.
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Dipek said that Prime Minister Modi lacked the stature to eclipse them. “Even if you remain in power for 120 years, you will never become bigger than Ambedkar, Gandhi and Nehru.”
(With agency inputs)