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Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday reacted to a video showing a giant cockroach effigy in Delhi’s Pritampura, reportedly planted to burn alongside other traditional effigies on Dussehra.

“Thank you for the free publicity,” Dipke said in a post on X, responding to the video showing visuals from Netaji Subhash Place (NSP) grounds in Pitampura, an area situated in North-West Delhi.

The video, shared by ANI, said Pritampura’s Shri Keshav Ramlila Committee ‘planned’ to burn a 30-foot cockroach effigy along with the traditional effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad.

The Cockroach Janta Party was founded by Dipke in May this year as a satirical political initiative centred on the cockroach, using humour and political commentary to draw attention to public issues.

The party emerged after a remark by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant comparing unemployed youth to “cockroaches” and “parasites of society”, and the insect subsequently became a symbol used by the movement to highlight youth grievances.

The effigy comes amid the CJP’s protests in Delhi, including a demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. However, the committee has denied any political motive behind the decision.

Ashok Goel, the committee’s president and a BJP MLA, told news agency PTI the last week that the cockroach represented “filth and dirt” and that the initiative was part of the Swachh Bharat and Swachh Delhi campaigns. He said the committee had previously burnt effigies representing Naxalism and terrorism.

#WATCH | Delhi: The Shri Keshav Ramlila Committee is set to burn a cockroach effigy alongside Ravana on Dussehra to symbolize the fight against dirt and unhygienic conditions.

Ashok Goel Devaraha, President of the Shri Keshav Ramlila Committee and Model Town MLA, said, “…For thousands of years, we have been burning the effigies of Ravana, Meghnada, and Kumbhakarna, a tradition that conveys the message that, ultimately, truth always prevails. Keeping this in mind, we have also traditionally burned a fourth effigy representing the specific malaise affecting the nation; for instance, we have previously burned effigies representing Naxalism and terrorism. This year, our committee, the Keshav Ramlila Committee, has decided to burn an effigy of a cockroach, which serves as a symbol of filth. Our goal is to eliminate filth, whether it is within our homes, in our immediate surroundings, or in society at large. Therefore, at the Keshav Ramlila Committee grounds in Pitampura, we will be burning an effigy shaped like a cockroach…” (15.10)

“Our goal is to eliminate filth from three areas: our homes, our immediate surroundings, and society at large,” Goel told ANI, adding that the effigy was intended to reinforce the message of cleanliness and the victory of good over evil.