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India’s main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resignation over the police crackdown on student-led protests demanding reforms to the country’s examination system, as the prime minister called for a “foolproof” public examination system following a series of question paper leak scandals.
Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi and other lawmakers from the opposition Congress party marched towards Modi’s residence in New Delhi to protest what they described as police brutality against students during Monday’s demonstrations.
“We have marched to PM Modi’s house to demand answers from him for the brutalities against young students yesterday,” Rahul Gandhi wrote on X.
The Congress leader accused the government of refusing to take responsibility for the violence or allow a debate in parliament.
Modi must resign “for destroying the future of India’s youth”, Gandhi said in a social media post.
“The government doesn’t want to take any accountability, nor does it want to have a debate on it in parliament,” he added.
The protests stem from widespread anger over repeated examination paper leaks, including a national medical entrance test affecting more than two million students.
Demonstrators have demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accusing the government of failing to protect the integrity of the education system.
Thousands of protesters, mobilised by the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), marched towards parliament on Monday in one of the largest street demonstrations in New Delhi in about five years.
Police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse the crowds after protesters allegedly threw stones. Delhi Police said nearly 180 people were injured in the clashes, including 118 police and security personnel and 60 protesters.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke said more than 150 protesters were receiving treatment in hospitals, although Reuters could not independently verify that figure.
Parliament was adjourned on Tuesday after opposition lawmakers demanded a discussion on what they described as the “brutality unleashed on students.”
Addressing lawmakers from his ruling alliance, Modi said the government had acted immediately after reports of examination irregularities emerged. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju quoted the prime minister as saying that 13 people had been arrested and jailed over the paper leak scandal.
Modi also said the medical entrance examination had been successfully reconducted and results announced without delay.
“The prime minister said…that to ensure the future of youth is not jeopardised…everyone should unite to ensure strict steps are taken, those guilty punished, and a foolproof system is created,” Rijiju said.
The prime minister has not commented directly on the police action against protesters.
The CJP said it would continue its campaign but suspend further marches to parliament to avoid more violence.
“We won’t stop. Pradhan has to be sacked,” CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said on social media.
Protest organisers accused authorities of using excessive force and said hundreds of demonstrators had been injured.
“It’s a shameful day in the history of Indian democracy that people, honest students, who had come for a genuine issue were brutally beaten by the Delhi police,” Ranka told AFP.
Dipke urged supporters not to lose hope but said the group would avoid another march to parliament because it did not want more young people to be injured. He also apologised to supporters, particularly women, whom he said were beaten by male police officers.
Delhi Police defended its actions, saying protesters had “displayed unruly, aggressive and violent behaviour” and had deliberately violated prohibitory orders despite repeated warnings.
The movement, launched online in May as a satirical campaign, has rapidly gained millions of supporters, particularly among Generation Z, and has emerged as one of the biggest political challenges to Modi since he secured a third consecutive term in 2024.
The protests have been fuelled by a series of examination scandals, including the cancellation and re-conduct of a medical entrance test after a question paper leak and controversy over the online marking of examinations taken by nearly two million high school students.
The movement also gained momentum after activist Sonam Wangchuk began a hunger strike on June 28 before being taken to hospital by police on Saturday.
Despite India’s rapid economic growth, persistent unemployment and repeated examination controversies have intensified frustration among young people seeking education and stable jobs.
With inputs from Reuters and AFP
