New Delhi: Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has withheld the official account of the "Cockroach Janata Party," a viral satirical political movement within India, following a government legal demand. The suspension came on Thursday, just hours after the meme-driven collective achieved a major milestone by overtaking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Instagram followers.

The account, operating under the handle @CJP_2029, began displaying a blank page with a message stating it had been "withheld in India in response to a legal demand" for users operating within the country.

Abhijeet Dipke, the 30-year-old founder of the movement, confirmed the block by sharing screenshots of the restrictions. "As expected, Cockroach Janta Party's account has been withheld in India," Dipke posted from his personal account.

Under India’s Information Technology Act, the government possesses broad powers to order platforms like X, formerly Twitter, to block content or accounts in the interest of public order, sovereignty, or state security.

The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) was launched just five days prior, on May 16, as an ironic reaction to remarks attributed to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant. During a court hearing, the Chief Justice used the word "cockroach" while addressing individuals using fake degrees to enter professional spaces. Chronically online and unemployed youth, feeling insulted, quickly weaponised the term.

What began as an internet joke rapidly transformed into a major digital-native political movement, drawing millions of frustrated young Indians dealing with high youth unemployment, persistent exam paper leaks, and perceived institutional elitism.

By late Wednesday, the movement’s Instagram page (@cockroachjantaparty) had skyrocketed past 13 million followers, eclipsing the official Instagram handle of the BJP, which stands at approximately 8.7 million. With this rapid surge, the CJP's Instagram handle has now equalled the follower count of India's main opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), making it one of the fastest-growing digital political phenomena in India's internet history.

Mainstream opposition politicians, including Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, had previously engaged with or expressed amusement at the movement, amplifying its visibility.

Though the Chief Justice later clarified that his remarks were misunderstood and targeted specifically at fraudulent professionals rather than the broader youth population, the clarification did little to slow the momentum of the parody party, which claims to have recorded hundreds of thousands of member registrations on its website.

While the movement's X account remains inaccessible to users inside India, its Instagram account remains active and continues to gain followers.