International Desk :
Thousands of protesters gathered in and around Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, India, on Monday. Their presence caught the police and security forces completely off guard.
Despite several layers of barricades, deployment of about 3,000 security personnel and shutdown of internet services, this unprecedented student protest took place. This huge crowd of students and youth reached the doorstep of the Parliament building. Later, the police fired tear gas shells and beat them with batons.
A reporter for The Hindu newspaper said that these ‘leaderless’ protesters moved from Jantar Mantar towards the Parliament building via Raisina Marg. At that time, the police did not offer them any obstacles. All the roads leading to the Parliament were then filled with protesters. The first day of the monsoon session of the Parliament began yesterday. On the same day, the protesters broke the barricades and started moving towards the Parliament. At one point, the police tried to stop them by parking a bus 100 meters away from the Parliament premises.
The protest began in protest against the recent NEET exam question paper leak. Following this, the online youth organization ‘Kakroch Janata Party’ (CJP) called for a siege of the Parliament building demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. This huge crowd gathered in response to their call.
Earlier, rights activist Sonam Wangchuk started a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in solidarity with the protest. Police forcibly removed her from there in the early hours of July 18. She had been on a hunger strike for 20 days. This incident probably added a new dimension to the protest. Hundreds of people started joining the movement in solidarity with her.
Last Sunday evening, intelligence sources informed the government that the crowd at the protest site was increasing. After that, the central government contacted the CJP members for the first time through New Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Sachin Sharma.
An RAF member fires tear gas shells at a protest by supporters of the ‘Kakroch Janata Party’ on the opening day of the monsoon session of India’s Parliament. New Delhi, India, July 20, 2026
An RAF member fires tear gas shells at a protest by supporters of the ‘Kakroch Janata Party’ on the opening day of the monsoon session of India’s Parliament. New Delhi, India, July 20, 2026Photo: Reuters
CJP member Saurabh Das said, “The DCP first came to us on Sunday evening. He offered us a meeting with the district magistrate.”
Saurabh Das added, “We rejected that offer. Then this morning they offered a meeting with a minister of state in charge and later with a central secretary. We rejected that too. Then the DCP wanted to know what we really wanted. We said that a delegation of ours would meet only a member of the central cabinet. Then they asked for a list of names of potential ministers. Later, Health Minister JP Nadda met us.
Seeing the intensity of the protests and the protesters reaching near the Parliament building, the government took action. The central government assigned Health Minister Nadda to hold talks with the CJP members. In a post on social media after the meeting, the minister said, “This morning, for the first time, a proposal for talks with the government came from the protesters. Our discussions have been going on since 11:50 am.”
Police detain a woman protester during a protest organized by supporters of India’s ‘Kakroch Janata Party’ demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the leak of exam question papers. Ahmedabad, India, July 20, 2026
Police detain a woman protester during a protest organized by supporters of India’s ‘Kakroch Janata Party’ demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the leak of exam question papers.
The Health Minister also said, “The meeting took place in a very cordial atmosphere. First, detailed verbal discussions were held with their delegation. Later in the afternoon, they submitted a written application. I have requested the protesters to withdraw their sit-in. At the same time, I have urged the administration to help normalize the situation.’
Senior ministers of the NDA government also held closed-door meetings inside Parliament. Among them, a meeting between Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan lasted for about three and a half hours.
Nothing was officially announced to the press after the meeting. It is believed that the NEET question paper leak and the ongoing protests were discussed there. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal also met Amit Shah for a short time. However, it is not clear whether the same issue was discussed between them.
A government official told The Hindu that the police were given clear instructions not to use force on the protesters. But when the protesters broke the barricades and started moving towards the Parliament building, the police first as a precautionary measure, tear gas shells were fired. Later, they were beaten with sticks. Several protesters and police personnel were injured during this time.
The official also said that a large number of people had gathered at the protest site with the help of political parties. These include Chandrashekhar Azad’s Azad Samaj Party (Kashiram), Aam Aadmi Party and Samajwadi Party.
The official also said that a large number of protesters had come from outside Delhi. Especially a large number of people from Rajasthan participated.
Nitish, a police job aspirant, arrived from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh yesterday morning. He said, “The government must be held accountable for the question paper leak.” When asked how he reached so close to Parliament and whether the police stopped them, he said, “After breaking the first barricade, we just walked. No one stopped us.”
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