For years, Indian politicians have spoken about the youth far more often than they had spoken to them. Suddenly, however, the political establishment appears to have discovered a new urgency - Generation Z. The student-led CJP protests have acted as a wake-up call, forcing both the ruling party BJP and the opposition Congress to recognise that young Indians are no longer merely an electoral statistic. By 2029, Gen Z, comprising those aged 18 to 32, is projected to number nearly 380 million. They are an increasingly assertive political constituency capable of setting the agenda themselves.
Rahul Gandhi's 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' in Pune and the BJP's intensified Gen Z outreach, are evidence of this course correction. The BJP has even constituted a dedicated Gen Z outreach team, while the RSS has separately intensified engagement with teenagers.
However, the bigger question is: will these overtures actually win the confidence and eventually the votes of Gen Z? The answer is unlikely to be yes merely because politicians have started holding youth meetings.
Race For Outreach
Rahul Gandhi's youth outreach in form of campus connect and other initiatives such as Instagram 'Ask Me Anything' are significant because they are an attempt to create a direct conversation with students rather than relying exclusively on the traditional political rally. Congress said more than 30,000 students had registered for the Pune event.
Of course, the BJP, questioned its funding and selection of participants, illustrating how quickly even youth outreach itself becomes part of the political contest.
Meanwhile, the BJP's response is equally revealing. After Prime Minister Modi, his ministers and party colleagues are posting unedited, natural-looking video reels in casual clothes. Government departments are ramping up presence on youth-centric platforms like Snapchat and Instagram to shift from one-way lectures to direct dialogue.
Initiatives like 'one day one campus' requiring ministers to visit educational institutions regularly to hear student grievances firsthand and report back to the Prime Minister's Office have started.
Yet there is a danger for both parties- mistaking visibility for connection.
Gen Z is not impressed simply by a leader sharing a stage with students, posing for photographs or speaking the language of social media. This generation has grown up in an environment of instant information, competing narratives and constant scrutiny. It is considerably less deferential to political authority than previous generations. The very protests that have triggered this sudden political attention demonstrated that young people can organise independently and force governments to respond.
That is the first lesson politicians need to absorb.
Real Connect Missing
A politician speaking in the vocabulary of young people does not automatically make that politician relevant to them.
For Gen Z, the real political questions are brutally practical. Will the education system be streamlined leading to meaningful employment? Why do professional degrees not necessarily translate into secure careers? Can competitive examinations be trusted? Why are opportunities so uneven? How affordable will higher education be? Can young people realistically buy homes or build independent lives? What happens to mental well-being in an intensely competitive society? And can institutions - from universities to recruitment agencies-be trusted to function fairly?
The CJP protests brought several of these anxieties into the political mainstream. The subsequent youth protests elsewhere in the country (for example Jharkhand) have also focused on unemployment, education and declining trust in institutions.
This is precisely where political parties will be tested.
Gen Z does not merely want to be heard - it wants evidence that being heard produces consequences.
If a student raises concerns about examination irregularities, the answer cannot simply be another committee. If young graduates complain about unemployment, another employment summit will not suffice. If students complain about expensive education, a photo opportunity at a university campus will not solve the problem.
Credibility Test
The political class today faces a credibility test.
The BJP has an advantage in one respect - it possesses the machinery of government and can demonstrate delivery. Its challenge is to convince young people that governance is responsive rather than merely efficient. Congress, on the other hand, can position itself as the political voice of youth discontent, but it too must answer a difficult question- what concrete alternative does it offer?
Gen Z is unlikely to be permanently captured by either party's traditional ideological framework. Its political behaviour may be more transactional and issue-based. A young voter may support one party because of employment, another because of education, and reject both over institutional concerns. Political loyalty cannot simply be inherited from parents.
That makes social media particularly important- but also dangerous. Reels, influencers and carefully engineered digital campaigns may create reach, but they cannot manufacture credibility.
The irony is that the political establishment may be approaching Gen Z with precisely the old political mindset that Gen Z is challenging.
Young Indians do not necessarily want politicians to behave like influencers. They want politicians to behave like accountable public representatives.
The answer, therefore, is not more rallies but more sustained engagement. Political parties need permanent student forums, transparent grievance mechanisms, meaningful youth representation in decision-making and measurable commitments on education and employment. They need to allow young people to disagree with them without immediately branding them as politically motivated.
Most importantly, they need patience.
The protests appear to have taught India's political parties an uncomfortable lesson: today's youth can mobilise without waiting for political parties to mobilise them. The RSS's own emphasis on discussion rather than dictation after the protests acknowledged this changing political temperament.
For Congress and the BJP, that is a much harder task than organising a 'mass connect' programme. Gen Z is watching. And unlike previous generations, it has the tools, confidence and impatience to demand answers in real time.
(The author is Contributing Editor, NDTV)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author
