3 min readKochiUpdated: Jun 15, 2026 07:59 PM IST
While the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and the slogans it’s been raising are gaining widespread traction, with more and more members of the public joining the chorus, actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan has come down heavily on the movement, even going so far as to claim that the CJP and those supporting it are adhering to divisiveness to “weaken India’s integrity.”
Pawan’s statements arrived a day after actor Prakash Raj, along with education reformer and environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk, took part in a CJP protest in Bengaluru. He also called those extending solidarity with the party “small-minded.”
What is the Cockroach Janta Party?
For the unversed, the CJP is widely described as a youth-led political movement. It has been protesting against pressing issues such as the alleged irregularities in the education and examination system, particularly the NEET paper leak, and unemployment over the past few weeks.
While addressing a Jana Sena Party (JSP) meeting at a star hotel in New Delhi, Pawan Kalyan, who also serves as the Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, said, “You must have heard of the cockroaches recently. It reminded me of the Sumathi Satakam (Telugu book on morals). Even a tiny creature or an ant can kill a powerful snake,” as reported by Hindustan Times. Pawan’s JSP is an ally of the BJP.
Why Pawan Kalyan is calling CJP’s supporters ‘small-minded’
“In the same manner, people with small minds and no understanding of the depth of this country’s politics will use divisiveness to weaken the country’s integrity. We must not fall prey to such thoughts. Even when crores of people with small thoughts meet, be it good or bad, they can have a strong effect. So, we must fight against it and not take part in it,” he added.
A few days ago too, Pawan Kalyan had taken massive jibes at the CJP. “Somehow, why they are angry, you have to look at it. Cockroach is the one that stays in the gutter… That means maybe I can understand the pain,” he told news agency ANI.
Pawan Kalyan recalls conversation about CJP with son Akira Nandan
Recalling a conversation he had with his son, Akira Nandan, about the CJP, the actor-politician said, “I was talking to my son this morning, and I was asking the same question. I asked, ‘How many of your friends are there?’ They have a huge group of friends, around 20 people, and asked him how many of them are there. I think three of them’ve subscribed.”
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While taking part in the CJP’s Bengaluru protest, Prakash Raj had asserted that activists and protestors cannot be silenced by labelling them as “anti-nationals, Pakistanis, or terrorists.”
What Prakash Raj said at CJP’s Bengaluru protest
He said, according to India Today, “We are not afraid if you call them Pakistanis, we are not afraid if you call them terrorists, we are not afraid if you call them cockroaches. The elected leaders should do their jobs. Why have you changed the equation? You are doing politics; we are supposed to do jobs. No! The youth of this country have decided to fight their fight.”
