For more than two decades, Narendra Modi has cultivated an image of the shrewd, patient politician, one who prefers calibrated moves to unnecessary risk, delivered with all the power of his theatrical oratory behind them. The past month has tested that reputation. A government that long projected unshakeable control over the narrative, with a track record of wearing down street protests by ignoring them or labelling them anti-national, found itself reacting, then over-correcting, then inventing a fresh ideological label that promptly became a badge of honour.

The sequence began with genuine student fury. Paper leaks in high-stakes competitive examinations, including NEET, forced millions to retake the tests and were linked to suicides. This fused with deeper grievances over unemployment and an education system widely seen as extractive. What began as online satire, the Cockroach Janta Party, born from a Chief Justice’s remark comparing some unemployed youth to cockroaches, grew into sustained protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar and a July 20 attempt to march towards Parliament.

Police met the march with tear gas and batons. Independent accounts and human-rights observers documented injuries among protesters and alleged excessive force; the police reported injuries to their own personnel and alleged violence by demonstrators. The images travelled faster than any official statement. Within days, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned, the first cabinet-level exit under sustained public pressure in Mr Modi’s tenure, accompanied by concessions on exam reforms and fast-track courts, and the withdrawal of cases against protesters, a matter that has now reached the Supreme Court of the country. The government’s next move was outreach.

Late-night Instagram Reels, selfie angles, and the repeated address “friends”. The intention was clear: reclaim the youth conversation on platforms Gen Z actually inhabits, project empathy, and shift the narrative from anger to accessibility. The reception was merciless. Memes dissected the camera angle, mocked the sudden familiarity, and........

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