No immediate relief for satirical 'Cockroach Janta Party' campaign as court refers matter to IT review panel

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to immediately restore the X account of the satirical political campaign 'Cockroach Janta Party', which was blocked earlier this month following a government order.

Issuing notices to both X and the Union government, Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav stated that the matter required a holistic consideration due to its potentially far-reaching implications and wider ramifications. The respondents have been given four weeks to file their replies, with the next court hearing scheduled for 6 July.

The social media account was suspended on 21 May "in response to a legal demand" that reportedly cited national security concerns. Abhijeet Dipke, the 30-year-old founder of the campaign, subsequently challenged the blocking order in court. During the proceedings, the High Court directed the statutory review committee, constituted under the Information Technology Rules, to examine Dipke's grievances before the next scheduled court date. Dipke, a political communications strategist currently residing in the United States, was granted permission to request a video-conferencing appearance before the committee, which meets bimonthly to review and potentially overturn blocking orders.

Arguing for the account's restoration, Dipke's legal counsel maintained that the campaign was based entirely on pure satire. The lawyer contended that even if specific posts were deemed objectionable, the authorities could have withheld those individual elements rather than blocking the entire account. However, Justice Kaurav observed that the jurisprudence surrounding such digital actions remains at a nascent stage, adding that the current case appeared distinct because the entire activity itself seemed slightly offending. The court also noted that neither the petitioner nor the bench had yet accessed the official blocking order, which will be placed on record by X once the government submits its reply.

The 'Cockroach Janta Party' campaign was launched on 16 May as a self-described "political front of the youth, by the youth, for the youth," quickly gaining massive traction, including 22.5 million followers on Instagram. The initiative was created in response to controversial remarks allegedly made on 15 May by Chief Justice Surya Kant, who was quoted comparing certain unemployed youths to cockroaches who enter social media and activism to attack others. Although Chief Justice Kant clarified the following day that he had been misquoted and was specifically criticizing individuals entering professions with fake degrees rather than youth in general, the satirical campaign had already gained significant momentum.