Indian police fired teargas and charged with batons on Sunday to prevent thousands of demonstrators from marching to the federal parliament in New Delhi on the opening day of the monsoon session. The Cockroach Janta Party, a youth-led movement born out of outrage over leaked national exams, had demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan after a scandal that invalidated a medical entrance test taken by more than 2.3 million students.
Police had barred the march and banned gatherings of five or more people around the parliament district, calling the protest illegal. The clashes continued into the evening, and opposition leader Dimple Yadav was detained. Opposition figures including Mallikarjun Kharge and Mahua Moitra voiced support, while the leader of the opposition in the upper house condemned the use of force.
The party was founded in May by an Indian graduate inspired after a chief justice referred to unemployed youth as "cockroaches", rapidly amassing millions of followers online.