Thousands of supporters of India's youth-led 'cockroach' movement have been protesting since June, demanding the education minister's resignation over exam paper leaks. This movement represents the most significant challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government during his third term, highlighting a pattern of large-scale public demonstrations in India over the past two decades.
These protests are fueled by allegations of widespread corruption, a complaint that has repeatedly brought crowds to the streets. Over the past twenty years, India has witnessed numerous significant rallies driven by various causes. In April 2011, anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare initiated hunger strikes to advocate for anti-graft legislation, drawing hundreds of thousands of supporters nationwide and eventually leading to the passage of an anti-graft law, albeit one Hazare felt was diluted.
Public outrage over the December 2012 gang-rape of a young woman in New Delhi led to massive protests, demanding systemic changes to address violence against women. In response, India amended laws to broaden the definition of sexual assault and established fast-track courts. December 2019 saw widespread protests against a new citizenship law, which critics argued discriminated against Muslims and violated the constitution's secular principles, leading to sectarian violence that claimed at least 76 lives.
In September 2020, thousands of farmers protested new agricultural legislation, fearing it would undermine guaranteed prices for their produce. These demonstrations persisted for over a year before Prime Minister Modi repealed the laws. More recently, in June 2022, a revised military recruitment policy sparked nationwide protests and rail blockades, with recruits and veterans objecting to fixed four-year contracts. The government offered a compromise by reserving 10% of state vacancies for those who served the contract period.
In August 2024, doctors took to the streets for months following the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata, demanding safer workplaces and swift investigations into violence against women.