Abhijeet Dipke, a former student at Boston University, flew to India on June 6 to lead a peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi under the banner of his satirical political group, Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). The demand was clear: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should resign and take accountability for the NEET-UG paper leak.
Over the next few days as the 30-year-old leader took the demonstration to cities across India, it grew into a nationwide movement, giving birth to an over a month-long sit-in protest beginning June 20. The protest gained momentum on June 28 after climate activist and educationist Sonam Wangchuk joined with an indefinite hunger strike, which ended on July 23.
The group also organised 'Chalo Sansad', a march to Parliament on July 20, to demand accountability.
The protest is no more limited to Jantar Mantar in the national capital. According to CJP Spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka, the protest has swelled and is being held across at least 34 cities.
"These are all the cities currently protesting against paper leaks. India has woken up," Ranka posted on social media on July 23 as he shared the list.
The names include: Kurukshetra, Chandigarh, Jammu, Dharamshala, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Unnao, Rampur, Bhopal, Indore, Ahmedabad, Surat, Patna, Bilaspur, Raipur, Kolkata, Jadavpur, Bengaluru, Davangere, Kalaburgi, Guwahati, Aizawl, Itanagar, Shillong, Agartala, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Rajahmundry, Chennai, and Thiruvananthapuram.
- Kurukshetra
— Ashutosh Ranka (@AshutoshRanka) July 23, 2026
- Chandigarh
- Jammu
- Dharamshala
- Jaipur
- Jodhpur
- Lucknow
- Prayagraj
- Unnao
- Rampur
- Bhopal
- Indore
- Ahmedabad
- Surat
- Patna
- Bilaspur
- Raipur
- Indore
- Calcutta
- Jadavpur
- Bangalore
- Davangere
-…
Here are visuals from protests across India:
A picture of a woman blocking a detention van carrying protesters near the Shivaji Park in Dadar has gone viral. The picture is from a protest held in Mumbai on Wednesday
The woman, identified as Rhiya Ahir, is an actor, a model, and an entrepreneur, as per her Instagram bio. She said that even though she is not a student, she stands with them.
Wearing a Spiderman mask, a man holds a poster during a protest at Freedom Park in Bengaluru.
Around 100 students of NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad observed a one-meal solidarity fast on the university campus in support of Delhi's Jantar Mantar protesters on Monday
Hundreds of students staged a protest at Jaipur's Jawahar Circle against the paper leak issue. The demonstration, which began on Thursday evening, continued Friday, with many youths, including women students, gathering at the protest site carrying placards and raising slogans against the Centre and the Rajasthan government.
The protesters demanded a transparent recruitment examination system in Rajasthan, stringent measures to prevent paper leaks and regulation of coaching institutes' fees and functioning.
The round-the-clock sit-in at Balan Illam in Chennai, which commenced on a small scale on Monday, gained momentum by the end of the week, leading to over 500 people, including celebrities joining.
Members of the May 17 Movement too held placards and staged a protest outside Shastri Bhavan demanding the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan, at Nungambakkam, in Chennai on Friday.
Protesters participate in a demonstration organised by the Students' Federation of India (SFI) and the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), in Kolkata, West Bengal.
In Bhopal, MBBS students expressed solidarity with protesters against alleged irregularities in the NEET exam.
In Lucknow too, members of various organisations and students displayed placards and raised slogans demanding the resignation of Education Minister during their foot march in support of students protesting in Delhi's Jantar Mantar.
