NEW DELHI: Talks between the Indian government and leaders of the youth-led “Cockroach” protest movement failed to produce a breakthrough on Friday, with both sides agreeing to resume negotiations on Saturday amid expanding nationwide demonstrations.
Senior ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh held around two hours of talks with leaders of the social media-driven Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), but the meeting ended without any agreement.
“We conveyed in very clear terms that nothing short of Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation or his removal from the Union Cabinet would be acceptable,” CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka told reporters after the meeting.
Modiji’s Reels won’t stop the angry students. We will not rest till Dharmendra Pradhan resigns pic.twitter.com/gGhgkZkxvp
— Cockroach is Back (@Cockroachisback) July 25, 2026
Nadda said the government had “heard their points” and would continue discussions in follow-up talks scheduled for Saturday.
Protests Spread Nationwide
While negotiations remained deadlocked, protests continued across India, with thousands of demonstrators gathering in New Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) has announced that it will join the ongoing students’ protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. The farmers’ union will march to the national capital on July 27 and has said its members will remain in Delhi until the students’ demands are accepted. pic.twitter.com/At7pHpLZik
— Ramandeep Singh Mann (@ramanmann1974) July 24, 2026
The movement, initially triggered by alleged irregularities in national examinations, has grown into a broader campaign demanding Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation and sweeping reforms to the country’s education system.
In Kolkata, thousands of students marched through the streets carrying Indian flags and chanting slogans condemning the police crackdown on protesters in Delhi. Similar demonstrations were held in Mumbai, where protesters also demanded Pradhan’s resignation.
ALSO READ: The Youth Movement India’s Modi Didn’t See Coming
Opposition Backs Protesters
The protests were sparked by a series of controversies, including the leak of a medical entrance examination paper that forced millions of candidates to retake the test, along with failures in an online marking system for high school students.
The movement has since broadened to include concerns over unemployment, opportunities for young people and criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.
Opposition parties continued to back the protesters, disrupting proceedings in the lower house of parliament on Friday and insisting they would not allow normal business to resume until Pradhan steps down.
Prime Minister Modi has pledged legal reforms and tougher action against those responsible for exam paper leaks, saying his cabinet would seek the early passage of legislation to speed up court proceedings in such cases.
