In what political analysts are calling the most significant convergence of opposition forces since the 2024 general election, virtually every major non-BJP party in India has formally declared support for the Cockroach Janta Party's ongoing protest at Jantar Mantar — as Sonam Wangchuk enters a critical phase of his hunger strike and the movement announces a march to Parliament on July 20.

The declarations came in rapid succession on Tuesday, beginning in the early morning hours and continuing through the night — a cascade of statements, visits, and personal calls that transformed the CJP's protest from a youth-led movement into a full-blown national political crisis for the ruling BJP government.

Rahul Gandhi's Statement: "India's Moment of Truth"

The most consequential statement of the day came from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, speaking at a press conference in New Delhi.

"What is happening at Jantar Mantar right now is not a protest. It is India's moment of truth," Gandhi said, his voice measured but grave. "Sonam Wangchuk — a man who has given his life to this country's children, to Ladakh, to our glaciers — is lying on a cot, losing weight by the day. Millions of students whose futures were destroyed by a paper leak are waiting for one simple answer: will someone be held responsible?"

Gandhi turned directly to the camera — and, by implication, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Modi ji, the cockroaches are not your enemy. They are your children. They are India's children. The fact that your government cannot send a single minister to speak to a man on a hunger strike — that is the most damning statement about what this government thinks of India's youth."

Gandhi also addressed the CJP directly, saying Congress "stands with the demands, not for votes, but for justice." He reiterated that the immediate resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan was the only acceptable first step.

"The cockroaches are not your enemy. They are India's children. Pradhan must go — not tomorrow, not next week. Now."

— Rahul Gandhi, Indian National Congress

The Domino Effect: Party After Party Joins

Within hours of Gandhi's statement, the declarations multiplied.

Uddhav Thackeray, chief of Shiv Sena (UBT), who had already been in contact with CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, issued a formal statement calling the BJP government's silence "a form of cruelty." He also sent a pointed message to the Congress: "If the INDIA bloc is serious about being the voice of the youth, then this is where we must stand. Not in press rooms — at Jantar Mantar."

Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party issued a video statement calling Wangchuk's deteriorating health a "national emergency." He accused the BJP of running "a government of indifference" and announced that SP would organise parallel protests in Uttar Pradesh in solidarity with the Jantar Mantar demonstrators.

Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress confirmed that TMC MPs and workers would join the Jantar Mantar protest through this week, with senior leader Mahua Moitra already present at the site. TMC called the government's failure to address the NEET-UG crisis "an act of betrayal against 2.2 million students."

DMK, the ruling party of Tamil Nadu, issued a statement in Chennai calling the CJP's demands "entirely legitimate." Party spokesperson T.K.S. Elangovan said: "The people of Tamil Nadu have always understood that a corrupt education system is a crime against the poor. We stand with the cockroaches."

The Left Front — CPI(M) and CPI — announced they would mobilise their student wings, AISF and SFI, to join the July 20 march to Parliament. CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said: "This is not a satire anymore. This is a genuine peoples' movement demanding accountability. History is being made."

Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD extended unconditional support, with party spokesperson Manoj Jha calling Pradhan's continued presence in the cabinet "an insult to every student in Bihar."

AAP's Arvind Kejriwal, speaking in Delhi, said: "The students came to this government with folded hands. The government ignored them. The students came with protests. The government ignored them. Now Sonam Wangchuk is fasting to death. How long will this government keep looking away?"

The Political Scoreboard As of July 15, 2026, parties formally backing CJP's demands include: INC, TMC, SP, AAP, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP), RJD, CPI(M), CPI, JMM, NC, and DMK. Combined, these parties represent over 230 seats in the Lok Sabha.

CJP's Response: "We Are Grateful, But We Are Not Anyone's B-Team"

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, who has been present at the Jantar Mantar site continuously, welcomed the declarations with characteristic caution.

"We are grateful for the support of every leader who has stood up for India's students," Dipke said in a video posted to CJP's Instagram account, which now has over 21.9 million followers. "But I want to be absolutely clear: the Cockroach Janta Party is not affiliated with any political party. We are not Congress. We are not AAP. We are not TMC. We are the cockroaches — and we don't take orders from anyone."

Dipke pointed out that the BJP's own language — calling CJP "the B-team of disruptive elements" — revealed a telling anxiety. "If we were just a satire, they wouldn't be so scared. If we were just a joke, the Prime Minister wouldn't be hiding behind his silence."

Chief spokesperson Saurav Das was equally direct about the limits of the political outreach: "We welcome solidarity. We do not welcome co-option. Every party that comes to Jantar Mantar must understand: you are guests of the movement. You do not own it."

Why Now? The Fear of July 20

Political analysts say the sudden and dramatic acceleration of opposition support is, at least in part, a response to the July 20 march to Parliament — an event that could draw enormous crowds and represent a direct, symbolic challenge to the government.

"Every party in the INDIA bloc has done the political math," said analyst Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay. "A march to Parliament by thousands of students, led by Sonam Wangchuk — who is visibly unwell — alongside the founder of a 22-million-follower movement, is an image that writes itself. No opposition leader wants to be the one who was absent."

There is also the factor of Wangchuk's health. His blood sugar has dropped to 67 mg/dL on multiple occasions — a level that doctors describe as dangerously low for a person who has been fasting for over three weeks. If Wangchuk's condition deteriorates further, or if he is hospitalised, the political fallout for any party that had not expressed solidarity would be severe.

BJP Doubles Down

The BJP, for its part, has shown no signs of softening. A party spokesperson issued a statement Tuesday afternoon calling the opposition's rallying around CJP "a cynical attempt to exploit students for political gain."

"Every single party that has 'extended support' to this movement today opposed the National Education Policy, opposed CUET, opposed the government's digital education initiatives," the spokesperson said. "Now they want to stand with students? This is the same opposition that failed students for 70 years."

BJP has continued to present Pradhan as a reformer whose work is being undermined by "political sabotage," and has refused to entertain any discussion of his resignation.

The Human Reality at Jantar Mantar

Beneath the political calculations, the protest site at Jantar Mantar continues to pulse with something raw and genuine.

By early morning on Tuesday, thousands of people had already gathered — students, parents, teachers, activists — in the July heat. Volunteers distributed water and glucose sachets. A group of medical students from Rajasthan held a banner that read: "We came here to become doctors, not criminals." A retired schoolteacher from Haryana, who had taken a bus overnight to be there, said simply: "I taught for 35 years. I never thought I would have to come to Delhi to fight for my students' right to a fair exam."

Sonam Wangchuk, resting under a shaded canopy, sent a short message through Dipke: "Tell them I'm not hungry. I'm watching. I'm waiting. The government can end this today, if it chooses to."

The choice, for now, belongs to the BJP.