Cybersecurity expert Amit Dubey, speaking on The Raunac Podcast, argues the CJP protest’s explosive social media growth was a calculated, well-funded operation rather than an organic student movement. Citing thousands of new UP-based accounts, heavy foreign following, bot-like patterns and algorithmic amplification, he links the campaign to electoral ambitions and warns that in cyberspace, users are products shaped by hidden political narratives.
ON AUGUST 8, 2026, The Raunac Podcast (TRP) uploaded an episode of a podcast featuring cybersecurity expert Amit Dubey. Dubey, an author, researcher, entrepreneur, and public speaker, has worked with several police departments and investigative agencies in India to help solve criminal cases.
During the podcast, Dubey discussed fake narratives, Gen Z, algorithms, Meta and how algorithms have become a new weapon. He also spoke about the CJP protest, its rapid growth on social media, and whether such growth could happen organically. The discussion explored how algorithms and social media are used to spread both pro-government and anti-government narratives and influence people online. Among the various topics, the discussion focused on the CJP protest's online presence and its influence on young people.
Dubey questioned the intent behind the CJP protest, pointing out that the party's Twitter handle is @CJP_2029, which, according to him, indicates an electoral ambition. He said the protest was not only about people's concerns but had become something driven through social media algorithms and was no longer limited to the education system.
Podcast host RJ Raunac then asked Dubey whether thousands of accounts posting similar content at the same time could be considered a natural trend. Dubey replied that the number of similar posts and their pattern had to be examined. He said, “When similar posts come, it means it is not an individual opinion. It is more of a toolkit executed.”
During the discussion, Dubey also highlighted that, according to his analysis, more than 7,000 new social media accounts were created in Uttar Pradesh during the protest. He said that several cities had their own CJP handles and added, “19% of the followers which are visible in these accounts, whether real or fake, were from UP.” According to Dubey, one reason for this could be that Uttar Pradesh is heading towards elections in 2027.
The discussion later returned to the question of whether the source of these thousands of accounts created in Uttar Pradesh could be identified. Dubey said that external analysis could help trace the source.
Raunac also raised the political aspect of the protest, saying, “The problem is not that you are creating a political party, you can create a political party but if you are creating that party under the umbrella of C Janta Party then it shows that you want to change the political regime but you are taking the cover of a political protest.”
Dubey responded, “So, the students think they're fighting for us. But their main goal is to win elections or start a party, which they did. They now have a CJP handle in every city, from Barabanki to Sitapur. Previously, the UP police used to have these kinds of handles.” He then discussed the analysis he had conducted around the CJP protest.
He explained, “We also analyzed who is following those handles. How many government officers are following it? How many police officers are following this? How many prominent journalists are following this so that we can understand the reality. Is it just a student protest and beyond that and who is supporting it? So, it gives us a lot of insight into the real picture. For those who think, ‘What will happen with just one follow?’ Just one follow can convey a lot.”
The conversation then shifted to the CJP social media account, which has millions of followers. The speakers discussed the presence of followers from outside India and whether some of these accounts could be bots or fake accounts. When asked whether research had been conducted into the followers, Dubey said, “So when it started, at that time we analyzed the first 5,000 followers, the first 10,000 followers, and the first 15,000 followers. Yes, at that time, approximately 80% of followers were from outside.”
He said reports were published at the time suggesting that only around 15–20% of the followers were from India, while the rest were from outside the country. According to Dubey, the pattern later changed, with the proportion of foreign followers coming down. He further said that in July, 2026 more than 100,000 people were added to the account every day, which he estimated meant around 3 million followers were added within a month. He said that although this was the lowest trend compared to the beginning, the initial growth had been much stronger.
According to Dubey, the follower trends indicated that the account initially gained support from fake bots before the algorithm began supporting and promoting the account. He also said that the research examined the age groups of followers, particularly the presence of young people. Dubey concluded from his analysis, “It was a well funded organized move. It was not at all organic”
Raunac asked Dubey whether the CJP protest had made people question if they were using social media or whether social media was using them. Dubey responded by explaining a common idea in cybersecurity and cyberspace: “Remember one thing in cyberspace, you are not the customer, you are the product.” He added that someone else ultimately benefits from this system.
(Edited by Harsh Pandey)
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