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Assessor of India Chief Justice Surya Kant has prompted a huge controversy due to his severe criticism of the jobless youngsters. The CJI, while hearing a petition by a lawyer petitioning for being made a senior advocate, called some unemployed youths “cockroaches” who are unable to get a job or would be unable to join any profession.

There are adolescents that are like cockroaches; they don't have any job, and there is no place that they can go in a profession. “Some of them turn to media, some to social media, some activate RTI, and other activists, and they begin targeting everybody now in open court,” CJI Surya Kant remarked.

Chief Justice Bagchi said this as he criticized some attorneys who allegedly graduated with questionable degrees and those who are exploiting social media and activism. The bench held that there was a concern with the rise of frivolous litigation and attacks on the institutions.

The statement has come under extensive criticism across social media, with users questioning the CJI's level of empathy for the huge youth unemployment issue plaguing India. Opposition leaders, journalists, and activists have called for the apology to the nation, which said the word 'slur' about the top man of the nation. Others explained that the observation was an ironic comment on frustrated professional criticism being replaced by criticism without cause.

The event has sparked a national debate about youth employment, free expression, and the value of activism in the face of a culture of impunity.