Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi interacts with college students on the stage throughout the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ program in Prayagraj on August 8, 2026.
| Picture Credit score: ANI
Chief of Opposition within the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday (August 9, 2026) mounted a pointy assault on Union Dwelling Minister Amit Shah over the alleged use of batons and pellet weapons in opposition to college students protesting at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on July 20.
He stated Mr. Shah would “eventually” need to reply for the “crime”.
In a publish on X, Mr. Gandhi referred to a scholar he met at his ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme in Prayagraj on Saturday who, he claimed, informed him that he had “no choices left”.
The scholar had spent years getting ready for examinations, bought household land and left his dad and mom burdened with debt, Mr. Gandhi stated. “This isn’t his failure, it’s the failure of a system that refused to reward his arduous work,” he stated.
The Opposition chief stated a number of days had handed for the reason that college students referred to as off their agitation over paper leaks, however Mr. Shah had not spoken concerning the police motion in opposition to them.
“Batons and pellets have been used in opposition to younger individuals on the streets of the capital — and also you didn’t utter a single phrase. In the end, you’ll have to reply for this crime,” he stated.
The difficulty has additionally disrupted the Parliament, with the Opposition insisting that Mr. Shah make an announcement in each the Homes on the police motion.
Talking to reporters in Alappuzha, Congress basic secretary (organisation) Okay.C. Venugopal additionally focused Mr. Shah and defended Mr. Gandhi’s scholar outreach in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj. He alleged that the BJP authorities tried to disrupt the occasion.
“Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi tried their finest to disrupt that occasion in Allahabad. They even unfold human waste alongside the trail resulting in the venue,” he stated.
Mr. Venugopal stated the venue was initially denied after strain was allegedly exerted on the school administration, however permission was finally granted.
“However what was the scene witnessed there yesterday, in Allahabad? These weren’t typical Congress staff, Youth Congress, or NSUI members. That was India’s actual Gen Z,” he stated, claiming that related participation had been witnessed at programmes in Kota and Dehradun.
He additionally cited Mr. Gandhi’s interventions on behalf of scholars affected by police motion, together with these injured by pellet weapons and feminine college students who have been allegedly overwhelmed by male police personnel.
Requested about senior Congress chief Shashi Tharoor’s remarks evaluating the response to Mr. Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme with the Jantar Mantar protests led by Cockroach Janata Get together (CJP), Mr. Venugopal stated he had seen solely media experiences about the remarks however urged his occasion colleagues to not make statements that might “please the BJP”.
“The BJP shall be delighted if somebody finds fault with Rahul Gandhi or says two damaging issues about him,” he stated, whereas including that he didn’t imagine Mr. Tharoor had made the remarks intentionally.
Talking at an occasion in Maharashtra on Friday, Mr. Tharoor had acknowledged that his occasion’s college students’ outreach didn’t resonate the identical manner because the CJP protests. A day later, he clarified that he was stressing the necessity for political events to open their doorways and create pathways for the following era to realize energy to form politics.
Revealed – August 09, 2026 04:42 pm IST
