Kharge Slams Police Action on CJP Protestors as INDIA Bloc Holds Key Meet

Intensifying opposition coordination during the ongoing session, key leaders of the INDIA bloc, including Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi and members of allied parties such as SP, Left and Sena, held a formal meeting with the Lok Sabha Speaker at the Parliament House.

Expressing deep regret over the police crackdown on student protesters, Rajya Sabha Opposition Leader and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge condemned the use of force against young people demanding justice and announced that he chose not to celebrate his birthday.

Mallikarjun Kharge stated that in a post about X, he expressed his anger against administrative pressure.

She wrote: “Yesterday the nation witnessed taunts, tear gas canisters, and the suppression of a peaceful Democratic protest by the Government. The voices of students demanding justice were met with force rather than answers. This is not how a ‘Mother of Democracy’ treats her young children. Under these painful circumstances, I have decided not to celebrate my birthday today.”

He said: “I am deeply grateful to all Congress leaders, workers, supporters, well-wishers and every citizen who sent their warm wishes. Your love means so much to me and I thank each of you from the bottom of my heart. But today is not a day of celebration. It is a day of reckoning. Restore democracy.”

“Why are students demanding justice met with brutal lathis and tear gas? Why is Parliament virtually sealed off and the internet shut down? Who will take responsibility for repeated paper leaks and the suffering of thousands of young people?” Kharge added.

“The government should immediately allow this issue to be discussed comprehensively in Parliament. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should resign, taking moral and political responsibility for the issue. A 21st century student-centric examination system with secure digital question banks and random papers. An independent and merit-oriented education system with higher spending on education, free from political interference by RSS. Legal protection for students through mandatory re-examinations and compensation when irregularities occur in examinations. Our children deserve justice, not oppression,” wrote Mallikarjun Kharge.

Meanwhile, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had told the NDA meeting in Parliament that the government “stands with the students” in the face of concerns over the leak of NEET exam papers and called for stringent action against those involved in irregularities.

Addressing reporters after today’s NDA Parliamentary Party ‘Barbecue Milan’ meeting, Rijiju said the Prime Minister had made it clear that the government was on the side of the students and that paper leaks were a national issue that should not be politicised.

The Monsoon Session of Parliament started on Monday and is scheduled to continue until August 13.