Delhi tightens security as CJP protests widen, Congress rallies spread

The Centre is airlifting 20 additional CRPF companies to Delhi as the CJP agitation, Opposition protests and overseas demonstrations over alleged NEET-UG irregularities widen

The Union government has ordered the deployment of 20 additional companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Delhi as protests over alleged irregularities in the Neet-UG examination intensified and demonstrations by Opposition parties spread across the country. 

The forces are being airlifted from Kolkata following an order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on Tuesday night, news agency PTI reported. The deployment is aimed at strengthening security in the national capital amid the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP’s) agitation, demonstrations by political parties and the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament.

  The CJP continued its agitation overnight, with protesters gathering at Jantar Mantar and other parts of central Delhi. The organisation, however, called off its proposed demonstration outside the Delhi Police headquarters after police released all detainees last night.

 

  CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said on Wednesday morning that his WhatsApp account had been blocked without any explanation.

  Meanwhile, CJP’s Ashutosh Ranka said the ongoing protest was the "biggest movement in India's post-independence history" and warned that millions more people could come to Delhi if the government did not agree to their demands.

  Talking to news agency ANI, Ranka said, “If the government doesn't agree, millions more will come to Delhi because this time we will not hold back and stay silent...The government really needs to get its act together; otherwise, the Youth of this country is going to take them down very badly," Ranka said.

  The Delhi Police said it has registered a total of 11 FIRs in the last two days over attacks on the RAF personnel during July 20’s protest.

 

Congress protests spread across the country

 

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were among those detained by the Delhi Police on Tuesday after opposition leaders staged a sit-in near Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence.

  Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and several other senior leaders also participated in the demonstration, which was organised in response to the police action against CJP protesters. Those detained were released a few hours later.

  The detentions triggered protests by Congress workers and youth-wing members in Assam, Kerala, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana. Party leaders accused the Union government of attempting to suppress democratic dissent.

  In a video message posted on X, Rahul Gandhi said the government was not interested in discussing the events surrounding the July 20 march towards Parliament, which had turned violent.

  “The students’ demands are, firstly, the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan and Home Minister Amit Shah. Secondly, action should be taken against those who have beaten and humiliated the students, and all the cases against the students should be withdrawn,” he said.

  Gandhi also demanded that the issue be debated in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

  Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee described the police action against the protesters as “unacceptable” and extended her party’s support to the Opposition sit-in.

  “The police atrocities on our youth in Delhi are unacceptable. Shame on the Union government. The All India Trinamool Congress fully supports the sit-down protest by the Opposition today near Akbar Road. Our full solidarity,” Mamata said in a social media post. 

 

Dharmendra Pradhan charges against Rahul Gandhi

  Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who is at the centre of the controversy, accused the Congress and Rahul Gandhi of using students as "political tools" to disrupt the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

  “Even after Government conveyed its readiness for a comprehensive discussion, the Congress chose political spectacle over democratic debate. Their objective was never solutions for students; it was disruption for political headlines,” he wrote on X.

  The minister said the government remained “100 per cent committed” to discussing NEET and addressing the concerns of students on the floor of Parliament.

  “The students of India deserve far better than being treated as props in a political campaign. They deserve certainty over chaos, solutions over slogans and responsibility over disruption,” he said.

  Pradhan added that the government remained committed to providing answers, reforms and accountability.

 

What is the latest on Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike?

  Union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh were reported to have met activist Sonam Wangchuk at Medanta Hospital on Tuesday evening. Wangchuk has been on an indefinite hunger strike since June 28 over alleged irregularities in the conduct of the Neet examinations.

  The Delhi Police had moved Wangchuk from the protest site at Jantar Mantar to Safdarjung Hospital on Saturday last week after his health deteriorated following more than three weeks of fasting. He was later shifted to a private hospital following an order of the Delhi High Court.

  Opposition parties have supported Wangchuk and the CJP protesters while demanding that the government engage with those participating in the hunger strike.

 

Demonstrations spread outside India

  Solidarity demonstrations supporting Wangchuk have also been held in New York, San Jose, London and Dublin.

  Activists from the US-based advocacy group Hindus for Human Rights gathered near the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Union Square in New York and in San Jose on Monday evening, reported PTI. They carried placards supporting Wangchuk and demanded Pradhan’s resignation.

  Similar demonstrations were organised outside the Indian High Commission in London and the Indian Embassy in Dublin, the group said.

  “Our protests sent a clear message, whether in New York or London, San Jose or Dublin: India’s students deserve to be treated with fairness and dignity,” it said.

  The organisation also urged the government to reach out to Wangchuk and other protesters participating in the hunger strike.