Abhijeet Dipke, 30, who has lived in the United States for the past two years, was being ​carried along on the shoulders of supporters when he was ​suddenly slapped repeatedly on the shoulders and face by ⁠two men, television and social media footage showed. The men were ​not identified.

“These are all tactics to scare us, threaten us and ​distract us from the main issue at hand. But we will continue to speak out,” Dipke said in a video posted on the group’s social media ​accounts.

Dipke was slapped by at least two men several times ​before he was carried away.

The rapid rise of Dipke and his Cockroach Janta Party, ‌which ⁠says it represents “the lazy, the unemployed, and the chronically correct”, is driven by the concerns of the young in a country where those below the age of 30 are estimated to number more ​than half of ​the population ⁠of 1.42 billion.

The group, which has amassed more than 22.5 million followers on Instagram since launching in ​mid-May, has been demanding the resignation of Education Minister ​Dharmendra ⁠Pradhan over recurring leaks of examination papers and errors in marking that have threatened to derail the careers of millions of students.

Modi’s government ⁠has blocked ​the movement’s X account, which the group ​has challenged in a Delhi court. It now communicates with its 278,000 followers on ​X via an alternate account.