Delhi HC to hear plea by Cockroach Janta Party against X account block

The Delhi High Court is set to hear a plea on May 29 from Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke. He is challenging the Central Government's move to block the satirical party's X account, citing national security concerns.

The Delhi High Court is scheduled to hear on May 29 the plea filed by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke challenging the blocking of the party's X (formerly Twitter) account by the Central Government.

The matter is listed before Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav on Friday. Dipke has approached the High Court alleging that the government blocked the party's social media presence, citing national security concerns.

Wider Crackdown Alleged

Along with the withholding of the party's X handle, Dipke has also alleged that the party's Instagram account, website and backup social media accounts were either hacked or taken down as part of a wider crackdown on the satirical political movement.

According to Dipke, the official Instagram account of the Cockroach Janta Party was hacked, resulting in the loss of access to the page. In posts shared through his personal X handle, he claimed that his personal Instagram account was also compromised while the party's X account was withheld, and a backup account was removed.

"Crackdown on Cockroach Janta Party. The Instagram page was hacked. My personal Instagram hacked. Twitter account withheld. Back-up account also taken down," Dipke had posted.

Dipke has further alleged that the party's website was also taken offline and accused the authorities of acting in a "dictatorial" manner.

Party's Growing Influence

The Cockroach Janta Party, a satirical online political outfit known for meme-based commentary on governance and public issues, had recently gained significant traction on social media platforms, particularly among millennials and Gen Z users.

NEET Paper Leak Petition

Dipke has claimed that nearly 10 lakh people had signed up as members of the digital movement. He also alleged that around six lakh members of the platform had signed a petition seeking the resignation of the Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged NEET-UG paper leak controversy.

The plea also raises allegations of selective targeting of accounts associated with the movement by social media platforms, prompting Dipke to seek judicial intervention before the Delhi High Court.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)