PANAJI
A social media post -- “cockroaches are with termites” -- by Goa BJP vice-president Narendra Sawaikar, made a day after protests over the alleged NEET examination paper leak, has snowballed into a political controversy, with Opposition parties accusing the BJP of insulting the country's youth and demanding an unconditional apology. The controversy erupted after Sawaikar posted an illustrated map of India infested with cockroaches and termites on X, captioned, "Cockroaches with the termites! Save the nation!" The post came after demonstrations organised by the "Cockroach Janta Party" at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi against the alleged NEET paper leak, with a parallel protest also held at Azad Maidan in Panaji.
Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao strongly condemned the post, alleging that the BJP was branding students and young protesters as "termites" for questioning the government over examination paper leaks.
"Calling our youths 'termites' is an insult to our country. They are the future of our nation, but the BJP is trying to suppress them when they raise questions about 152 paper leaks in the last 10 years. The BJP is responsible for 25 suicides linked to these paper leaks," Alemao said, adding that students demanding Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation should not be vilified. Goa Congress working president Sunil Kawthankar demanded that Sawaikar apologise within 24 hours, asserting that criticism of the government cannot be equated with being anti-national. He alleged that the BJP routinely labels its critics as "anti-national" or "terrorists" and maintained that citizens have every democratic right to question the government.
National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) Goa unit too condemned the remark calling it “disgraceful” and “dehumanising” and demanded an unconditional apology from the former MP. The AAP Goa Youth Wing echoed a similar view, with its office-bearers accusing the BJP of targeting students protesting over failures in the education system. They demanded an apology to Goa's youth.
Goa Forward Party student wing president Vrushank Gaonkar said the remarks would only strengthen students' resolve to raise their voices against injustice.
However, Sawaikar rejected the criticism and refused to apologise. Defending his post, he said it did not refer to any individual or group.
"My post is still there on X. I have not referred to anyone as termites. I only said 'Cockroaches with the termites'. If someone is drawing an inference, perhaps they feel guilty. Both termites and cockroaches destroy houses. Congress has linked the post to the protests, not me," he said, adding that he had every right to express his views. Backing Sawaikar, BJP leader Siddharth Kunkalienkar said the party had no reason to apologise and stood by the vice-president's statement. “Where is the question of apology? Has the post named anyone?” he questioned.
