Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke (file photo)
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PTI

Ahead of a proposed student protest at Jantar Mantar, youth-led campaign Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Friday appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide ₹1 crore compensation to families of students who allegedly died by suicide amid examination controversies.

He also reiterated the organisation’s demand to sack Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, calling for accountability.

The appeal comes ahead of CJP’s proposed second protest at Jantar Mantar on June 20, where the organisation plans to intensify its campaign against alleged examination irregularities and what it calls the government’s failure to ensure accountability in the education system. “I am writing to you today with a heavy heart, to bring your urgent attention to an escalating crisis that threatens the very future of our nation – the lives and mental well-being of our young students,” Dipke said in the letter.

He claimed that 11 students had died by suicide in recent weeks, including five deaths in the last 48 hours, and said the situation was worsening as students grappled with uncertainty over possible re-examinations.

He urged the Centre to provide immediate financial assistance to affected families, arguing that many had taken substantial educational loans to support their children’s academic aspirations.

“Having lost the very children they poured their life savings into educating, these families have been left entirely destitute,” Dipke wrote, demanding a compensation package of Rs 1 crore for families affected by what he described as the “compounding crisis of paper leaks”.

The CJP founder also renewed his demand for Pradhan’s removal, and stressed that the students wanted accountability.

“The Cockroach Janta Party has been demanding the resignation of the education minister for the past month and has been protesting across the country for our demands. All that we students want is to see some accountability for the loss of lives,” he said.

He added that holding leadership accountable is a “vital step toward restoring the faith of millions of students and parents in our educational framework”, and failing to do so “inadvertently sends a message that the administration accepts the status quo.” “Therefore, we respectfully request you to sack the education minister. He is serving at your pleasure, and the buck stops with the prime minister,” he said.

Dipke argued that removing the education minister would demonstrate the government’s commitment to accountability rather than weakness, and warned that inaction could deepen feelings of hopelessness among students and parents.

He also stressed immediate intervention and urged that the mental health and safety of students should be prioritised, and structural reforms should be brought in to “ensure that no more young lives are cut short by academic despair”.

“Students from all across India are assembling at Jantar Mantar, 20th June onwards, to raise our demand. We hope your government listens to the voice of India’s future,” he added.

The June 20 protest will be CJP’s second mobilisation at Jantar Mantar this month. On June 6, hundreds of students and young professionals gathered at the Delhi protest site after a call by Dipke, demanding Pradhan’s resignation over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests. Following the demonstration, the organisation expanded its campaign to several cities over examination-related controversies and paper leak allegations, and with Pradhan’s resignation remaining a key demand.

Published on June 19, 2026

Domestic benchmark indices snapped their five-session winning streak on Friday, with the BSE Sensex plunging over 830 points and the Nifty 50 shedding nearly 230 points, dragged lower by a sharp sell-off in information technology stocks after Accenture cut its full-year revenue growth guidance and delivered a weaker-than-expected outlook.

The decline comes after a strong rally in the previous five sessions, during which benchmark indices gained 4.3-5 per cent, supported by easing crude oil prices amid progress in the US-Iran peace process and optimism around the India-UK free trade agreement.

However, concerns over global technology spending resurfaced after Accenture lowered its full-year revenue growth forecast, triggering a steep correction across global IT stocks and weighing heavily on Indian technology counters.

Equity investors added ₹25.27 lakh crore to their wealth during the market’s five-session winning streak

IT stocks bear the brunt of selling pressure

At 9.47 am, Sensex traded 730.22 points or 0.94 per cent lower at 76,679.76 after hitting a low 76,578.08, and Nifty 50 fell 198.70 points or 0.82 per cent to 23,969.30.

The Nifty IT index slumped more than 6 per cent to a fresh low of 26,634.50, extending losses from the previous session when technology stocks were pressured by the US Federal Reserve’s hawkish commentary. All major sectoral indices traded in the red except pharma and healthcare.

Among Nifty 50 constituents, Infosys, TCS, Tech Mahindra, HCLTech and Wipro emerged as the biggest laggards. Selling pressure was equally visible in the broader technology space, with Mphasis, Persistent Systems and Coforge declining 4-6 per cent.

The weakness followed a sharp reaction in overseas markets. Accenture shares plunged 18 per cent overnight after the company trimmed its full-year revenue guidance. The negative sentiment spilled over to peers, with Cognizant falling 11 per cent and Capgemini declining nearly 9 per cent. Infosys ADRs tumbled nearly 10 per cent, while Wipro ADRs fell 3.6 per cent.

Broader market sentiment turns cautious

Broader markets also traded in negative territory, reflecting the risk-off mood. The Nifty Midcap index declined 0.44 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap index slipped 0.10 per cent. Market volatility rose sharply, with the India VIX climbing more than 6 per cent to 13.46.

At the time of writing, 1,103 stocks advanced, while 1,523 declined on the NSE. A total of 69 stocks touched their 52-week highs, compared with 28 stocks that hit fresh 52-week lows.

Top movers today

Among gainers in the benchmark index, Adani Enterprises, NTPC, Sun Pharma, Trent and Bharti Airtel bucked the broader weakness. In the midcap space, GVT&D, Tata Communications, Aurobindo Pharma and Waaree Energies gained 1-2 per cent, while IFCI, GE Shipping, Jyoti CNC and Netweb Technologies rose 2-5 per cent in the smallcap segment.

Despite the sharp correction, market experts believe underlying domestic fundamentals remain supportive.

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said improving macroeconomic conditions driven by the sharp correction in crude oil prices continue to provide underlying strength to the market. He noted that short covering by foreign institutional investors has aided the recovery in banking stocks and could support further gains in the segment, although intermittent profit booking cannot be ruled out.

According to Vijayakumar, the guidance cut by Accenture has triggered selling in Indian IT majors’ ADRs and could lead to further near-term correction in domestic technology stocks. However, he believes buying interest may emerge at lower levels as valuations become increasingly attractive.

He also highlighted that the moderation in FII selling, coupled with strong domestic institutional investor inflows, could help impart resilience to the broader market. Vijayakumar added that investors would closely track Reliance Industries’ annual general meeting for announcements related to its new energy business and the potential Jio IPO.

“The market structure indicates that buy on dips can turn out to be a good strategy today,” he said.

Wall Street ended higher overnight after reports of an interim peace accord between the US and Iran signalled a halt to military operations and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns over energy supplies.

The S&P 500 advanced 1.1 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.9 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1 per cent.

US markets will remain shut today on account of the Juneteenth holiday. Asian indices – Hong Kong, China and Taiwan are also shut today

However, the relief rally in global equities was overshadowed locally by the sharp deterioration in sentiment towards technology stocks, resulting in a broad-based decline across Indian benchmarks.

On Thursday, Sensex rose 254.36 points or 0.33 per cent to close at 77,409.98, while the Nifty 50 gained 82.30 points or 0.34 per cent to settle at 24,168.00.

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Published on June 19, 2026

A blazing rally in India’s short-end bonds, driven by plans to attract foreign capital, may fizzle out because the central bank is expected to drain excess cash from the financial system, according to analysts. 

BofA Securities and Bandhan AMC Ltd. expect the Reserve Bank of India to step up short-term cash withdrawal operations in coming months as surplus banking liquidity is seen climbing to pandemic-era levels of about ₹8 lakh crore ($85 billion). DBS Bank Ltd. expects the central bank to deploy a stronger tool in August by requiring banks to keep a larger proportion of deposits with the RBI.

There isn’t “much room for short-end bonds to rally because if you account for the maturity of the RBI’s short dollar forward book and a potential cash reserve ratio hike, you won’t have that much surplus liquidity left in the system,” said Ashhish Vaidya, head of treasury at DBS, referring to sales of the US currency the RBI has committed to in coming months. Such sales reduce rupee liquidity with local banks.

Short-end bonds have been the largest beneficiaries of foreign inflows after the government cut taxes on debt for global investors on June 5. That’s helped push down yields on five-year notes by more than 30 basis points to 6.49 per cent, surpassing the decline in longer-term yields and putting them on track for their biggest monthly fall in more than a year. 

Concerns about whether the bond rally can continue come at a time when the RBI, unlike its regional peers, has kept interest rates unchanged and used other steps to support the rupee. Still, rising inflation and risks of further price pressures from a weak monsoon may prompt it to raise rates later this year. Deutsche Bank economists expect quarter-point hikes each in October and December. 

The yield on five-year notes should stabilize around 6.50 per cent as the RBI uses reverse repurchase operations to take out surplus cash, said Rajeev Pawar, head of treasury, Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, referring to liquidity-withdrawal steps that typically reverse in a few days.

The measures announced earlier this month to draw foreign capital and support the rupee include an incentive plan for overseas Indians on bank deposits as well as a program to boost foreign bond sales by state firms. The steps could attract as much as $80 billion, according to economists’ estimates. As banks swap the dollars for rupees, that adds to liquidity surplus. 

While banking system cash surplus has dwindled to about ₹29,400 crore as of Wednesday, from a high of ₹5.3 lakh crore in April due to tax-related outflows, it may rise again toward the month-end due to state spending and the central bank’s dividend transfer to the government. 

“It will be important to reduce surplus liquidity,” said Vaidya of DBS, citing rising inflation risks, as wholesale prices in May rose 9.68 per cent from a year ago. 

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

Published on June 19, 2026