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New Delhi: The Cockroach Janta Party-led (CJP-led) protests at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi may have culminated with the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan. While, common sense dictates that the government was left with a bloody nose while the Gen-Z and the youth scored a major victory, it is time to take stock of who won and who lost – and by how much.

Students and Gen Z: The protestors at Jantar Mantar and elsewhere were young students, mostly below the age of 30. This generation knows no bounds, is fearless of authority, is more adept at manoeuvering in and out of challenging situations and has no filters, especially while dealing with those it hates or whose authority it doesn’t accept.

What started as a joke or a meme christened CJP quickly turned into a serious nation-wide resistance against a government that it views as dictatorial and unresponsive. Most of those protesting are not easily cowed down.

Also read: What the World’s Gen Z Uprisings Tell Us About India’s Own

For them Muslims and other minorities are not enemies. They will fight over burgers and vacation spots not religion or politics. They also know that not everything that comes their way via Whatsapp messages is true. So when they decided to take on the might of the government, there could only be one loser. In doing so, they created their own anthem of protest.

Digital media: With the legacy media, especially the TV news channels, facing a complete erosion of its credibility, the protestors reposed its faith in the new-age media like digital media and other sources like Instagram. Facebook and Twitter are passé. Memes are their weapons of choice.

Why waste 500 words ridiculing the prime minister or anybody else in power when the purpose is better achieved through a meme or a poster? For most of the protestors, godi........

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