Delhi Police Baton Charge, Hurl Tear Gas Shells on Students, Youth
Delhi Police Monday July 20, 2026 baton charged and hurled tear gas shells on students and youth protesting against paper leaks, unemployment, inflation and other issues plaguing the country today under the Narendra Modi government
New Delhi: Delhi Police Monday July 20, 2026 baton charged and hurled tear gas shells on students and youth protesting against paper leaks, unemployment, inflation and other issues plaguing the country today under the Narendra Modi government.
The CJP or Cockroach Janata Party activists, and students of AISA, SFI and other Left backed unions are protesting since about one month demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and dissolution of National Testing Agency (NTA).
The students' protest intensified after Sonam Wangchuk, who was on hunger strike and was forcibly shifted from Jantar Mantar to Safdarjung Hospital in New Delhi, on Saturday July 18 early in the morning.
Wangchuk was shifted to the government owned hospital two days before he was supposed to lead Chalo Sansad protest – a March to Parliament, on Monday July 20, 2026 when the Parliament’s Monsoon Session was scheduled to start.
The brutal Police action against the protesting students and youth began Monday morning as a large number of them gathered at Jantar Mantar before the Sansad Chalo march.
Video footage and images shared online showed Delhi Police Personnel and Rapid Action Forces (RAF) using extreme force to dispel the crowd.
Young students, including girls, were brutally thrashed even as the security forces blocked all the roads leading to Jantar Mantar.
Video footage shared online showed protesters shouting ant-government slogans at various Metro Stations.
As the roads leading to Jantar Mantar were blocked, a huge crowd is seen gathered in the entire neighboring areas. Reports of protests and police baton charge are also coming from Delhi’s iconic Connaught Place.
Despite brutal action, Delhi Police and Rapid Action Forces failed to control the mob part of which also reached near the Parliament premises, forcing the security staff to close the gates.
Sansad Chalo March Called Off
Amid the Police action, Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke announced to call off the Parliament March.
"We have called off our Parliament March”, he said.
Dipke said the students and youth were beaten and subjected to brutality, Delhi Police fractured the heads of girls as old as 12.
“When I was watching near the barricades, I saw police personnel grabbing girls by their necks. A girl told me that police personnel tore her clothes. Later, after taking her into detention, they also placed a foot on her chest”, he said.
“Wherever I saw people here, the police were swinging batons indiscriminately without thinking, injuring people's heads... The police were not concerned about these children.
“The police wanted someone or the other to die today. I did not want that to happen. It is our responsibility… We were concerned about these children because they had come on our call", he said explaining why the Parliament’s march was called off.
Even though the Parliament march was called off, hundreds of protesters are still camping at Jantar Mantar.
Rahul Gandhi, MPs lend their support
A number of MPs and political leaders Monday visited Jantar Mantar to lend their support to the protesting students and youth. Congress President Mallikarjun Khadge raised the issue in the Parliament.
Leader of Opposition (LoP) while extending his support to the protesting students, slammed the government for the Police action, and reiterated his party’s demand seeking Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.
“Narendra Modi is the most youth-hostile Prime Minister in India's history — so youth-hostile that he can't even demand the resignation of a failed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
“152 paper leaks. 7.5 crore students victimized. And not a single guilty person punished. Who got the punishment? The hardworking youth”, Rahul said.
“And when these children raised legitimate questions about education—they were met with batons and detention in response. The criminals who leaked the papers roam free—and the students raising valid issues are dragged around, beaten. This government isn't just failing the youth—it's pouncing on them”, he added.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra who visited Jantar Mantar to lend her support, while slamming the “police brutality”, hailed the students and youth – or Gen Z – for the “peaceful protests”.
“Union Home Minister Amit Shah must be asking today Kitne aadmi the?... You showed them Gen Z !
“You don’t need leaders. You can bring govt to its knees, seek accountability & get Education Minister to resign simply by non violent street protest. Their brutality will be their end (sic)”, she wrote on X.
Meanwhile, fake videos claiming Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Thiru C. Joseph Vijay, NASA Astronaut Sunita William, AIMIM President and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi and other prominent public figures visiting Jantar Mantar were also circulated and widely shared online. All these videos and reports were however debunked by fact checkers.
Actress Kunickaa Sadanand, who visited Jantar Mantar to lend her support multiple times, asked the government to take cognisance of the issues students and youth are raising.
"It's been more than a month. Even after the NEET paper leak, so much time has passed. The government should at least take cognisance of the issue. The Monsoon Session has begun, so we expected the matter would be discussed. Instead, as soon as the discussion was supposed to begin, the proceedings were adjourned. How are we supposed to trust you?" she asked.
As the videos and images showing Police action against the students and youth thronged the social media and internet space, protests also erupted in Mumbai, Nagpur, Hyderabad and some other cities of India.
Meanwhile, the Youth Congress and NSUI protests against paper leaks are also underway in different parts of India.
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