Delhi Ramlila organisers plan cockroach effigy amid CJP protests

A Ramlila committee in Delhi’s Pitampura plans to burn a 30-foot cockroach effigy alongside those of Ravan, Kumbhkaran and Meghnad this year. The organisers say the additional effigy is intended to spread a message about cleanliness.

The Shree Keshav Ram Leela Committee has linked the initiative to the Swachh Bharat and Swachh Delhi campaigns. Its president, BJP MLA Ashok Goel, said the decision had no political motive and described the insect as a symbol of dirt.

Goel said the burning would combine the festival’s message of the victory of good over evil with an appeal for cleaner surroundings. He also said a cockroach would appear among the demons in Ravan’s army during the performance.

The announcement comes as the Cockroach Janata Party, or CJP, holds demonstrations in the national capital. The group has joined opposition parties and student organisations challenging the electoral roll revision exercise. The protesters allege irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision and want Gyanesh Kumar to step down as Chief Election Commissioner.

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke has called for people to gather with the national flag at Central Park in Connaught Place on October 16. He has also asked supporters unable to travel to Delhi to hold flag marches in their own cities.

Police have made security arrangements around Connaught Place and Jantar Mantar, with paramilitary personnel deployed. The Delhi High Court declined on Thursday to halt the proposed demonstration, while police said they were preparing to maintain order.

The latest mobilisation follows the detention of Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka after a flight from Mumbai landed in Delhi on October 10. Das and Ranka were subsequently remanded to five days of judicial custody over allegations involving bond conditions and trespass at Jantar Mantar.