The parents of a Boston University student whose satirical social media account gained more than 19 million followers in a week said they fear for his safety and possible arrest, even as the online phenomenon rapidly rises.
Abhijeet Dipke, who previously worked with the Aam Aadmi Party, launched Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) about a week ago. The Instagram account quickly amassed millions of followers with political satire, memes and commentary on unemployment, education and exam paper leaks.
Dipke’s parents, Bhagwan and Anita Dipke, residents of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in Maharashtra state, were quoted as saying by Marathi news channel that they were anxious about their son’s growing popularity and do not want him involved in politics.
“If we look at politics nowadays, fear is natural, no matter how many followers he has,” Bhagwan Dipke said. “In one of his interviews, he himself expressed fear of being arrested after returning to India. We read about such incidents in newspapers.”
The satirical account emerged after controversy over comments attributed to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, who reportedly used the words “parasites” and “cockroaches” while reprimanding a lawyer seeking senior designation. The chief justice later said he was misquoted and that the remarks referred specifically to people entering the legal profession through “fake and bogus degrees.” The controversy helped fuel CJP, which adopted the insect as its symbol.
Anita Dipke said she hopes her son avoids politics and focuses on building a career.
“We just want him to come home safely,” she said. “Whether he continues in politics will be his decision, but we do not want him to pursue it. I do not know whether he will listen to us or not. I will not support him in this. I am worried about him.”
She said Abhijeet studied in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar before moving to Pune for higher studies, and that he shifted from engineering to mass media after finding engineering difficult.
Bhagwan Dipke said his son chose to study journalism abroad because his sister was already overseas, adding that he had hoped Abhijeet would eventually take a regular job in Pune or Delhi.
The parents said they first learned of CJP through a neighbor.
“Later, I was told by one of my grandchildren that he has more followers on social media than many prominent people in the country,” Anita Dipke said. “Earlier, he had worked with AAP. Even then, I had told him that we were not into politics and that he should pursue a service.”
Bhagwan Dipke said the platform’s sudden popularity has left him deeply worried.
“I’m worried because he is now famous. And such individuals get arrested,” he said. “I have not slept for the past two nights worrying about what might happen to him. I hate politics and have no interest in it.”
