Story perspectives

Delhi Leela Committee to Burn 30-Foot Cockroach Effigy

By Drooid · Oct 18, 2026, 4:09 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

The Delhi Shree Keshav Ram Leela Committee will burn a 30-foot cockroach effigy with Ravan, Kumbhkaran and Meghnad.
Committee president Ashok Goel, BJP MLA, says the cockroach symbolizes filth and supports Swachh Bharat and Swachh Delhi.
The burning is scheduled for Sunday, October 18, 2026.
Organisers say the act is apolitical, though it coincides with Cockroach Janata Party protests demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.

History

Historical Context

In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission, pledging to construct 100 million nationwide household toilets across India by 2019. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs allocated INR9,000 crore, and the Delhi Municipal Corporation reported a 30 percent reduction in urban waste within two years. Today, the Delhi Shree Keshav Ram Leela Committee’s 30-foot cockroach effigy, championed by BJP MLA Ashok Goel, echoes that sanitation drive by symbolizing filth and reinforcing Swachh Delhi. The spectacle reinforces political branding of cleanliness, pressures the Election Commission amid Cockroach Janata Party protests, and may shape future civic-campaign collaborations.

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Story summary

The Delhi Shree Keshav Ram Leela Committee will burn a 30-foot cockroach effigy with Ravan, Kumbhkaran and Meghnad.
Committee president Ashok Goel, BJP MLA, says the cockroach symbolizes filth and supports Swachh Bharat and Swachh Delhi.
The burning is scheduled for Sunday, October 18, 2026.
Organisers say the act is apolitical, though it coincides with Cockroach Janata Party protests demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.

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