Prakash Raj to join CJP’s Bengaluru protest, calls for accountability over government’s ‘failure’

Actor Prakash Raj is set to join a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) at Bengaluru’s Freedom Park on Sunday, as the youth-led movement intensifies its campaign demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities, including the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak.

A vocal critic of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Prakash Raj was initially expected to attend the group’s first protest in New Delhi but later said prior work commitments prevented him from participating.

Prakash Raj backs Bengaluru protest

The actor and the CJP confirmed his participation through posts on social media platform X.

“Big Announcement: Activist Prakash Raj will be joining CJP’s peaceful protest at Bengaluru,” the organisation said.

Raj also urged people to participate, writing: “I am travelling to Bengaluru to support this relevant peaceful protest. Please join us to raise our voice and make the government accountable for its failure.”

Nationwide campaign gathers momentum

The Bengaluru demonstration follows a series of protests organised by the group across the country. The movement began with a large gathering at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on June 6 and was followed by events in Pune, Lucknow and Amritsar over the past week.

The organisation is also scheduled to hold a protest in Hyderabad on Sunday, where activist Sonam Wangchuk is expected to address participants.

Speaking at the Amritsar protest, CJP founder Shyam Dipke said the movement would continue until accountability is fixed for alleged lapses in the examination system.

“We will all go to Delhi on June 20 and camp there until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns. The main objective is to secure justice for NEET and CBSE students. Paper leaks cannot continue,” he said.

At a protest in Pune, Dipke said Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have to decide whether “one crore students or one incompetent minister” was more important.

In Lucknow, he reiterated that demonstrations would continue until the education minister stepped down and appealed to students to join a planned mass mobilisation at Jantar Mantar on June 20.

The group’s earlier protest in Delhi drew hundreds of participants, many of them students and young people, with some wearing cockroach masks and carrying flowers as symbols of the movement.