Parliament is closed for another day

Speaker Sandhya Ray presides over Lok Sabha proceedings during the Monsoon Session of Parliament in New Delhi on July 21, 2026. Photo: Sansad TV/ANI Video Grab

Both Houses of Parliament remained paralyzed on the second day of the monsoon session on Tuesday (July 21, 2026) as Opposition members protested against the alleged NEET paper leak, police crackdown on protesting students in the capital and alleged donation theft of the Ram Temple.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned twice at 11:00 a.m. and at noon before the House adjourned for the day at 2:00 p.m. Similar scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha.

Opposition representatives met with the chairman

A delegation of opposition MPs from both houses, led by Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, met Speaker Om Birla on Monday (July 20, 2026) and demanded a discussion on alleged police brutality against students protesting against the education system in the state capital.

“Today we met the Speaker of the Hon’ble Lok Sabha along with the opposition MPs. Our demand is simple: Parliament must discuss in detail the brutality unleashed on students yesterday and the total lack of accountability of the government for the exam crisis. The students were beaten up for raising legitimate questions about their own future. If Parliament cannot discuss the future of India’s youth, why will the opposition’s voice not be heard. Parliament,” he wrote Mr. Gandhi on X.

Later, speaking to the media at the Parliament complex, Mr Gandhi said the Speaker told the delegation that they “must get permission from the government to discuss”.

Earlier in the day, leaders of the INDIA blocs met in the chamber of Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge and discussed the opposition’s strategy for the day.

The meeting was attended by Congress Parliamentary Party President Sonia Gandhi, Mr. Gandhi, Congress General Secretaries Jairam Ramesh and KC Venugopal, Dharmendra Yadav of Samajwadi Party, Supriya Sule of NCP (SP), Sanjay Raut of Shiv Sena (UBT), Mahua Brittas Maji of JMM and Kumars of JMM, PPI. other.

Repeat violation

As the Lok Sabha convened for Question Hour in the morning, opposition members started raising slogans over the alleged NEET paper leak and the police allegedly lathicharged the protesting students.

Mr. Birla assured the members that they would get an opportunity to raise their issues as per the rules. However, as the protests continued, the Speaker adjourned the House. Amidst the noise, ministers placed parliamentary documents on the table.

In the Rajya Sabha too, the first adjournment came within seven minutes of the House convening.

After the official papers were laid, Mr. Kharge rose to speak about the police action against the protesters. Finance Ministry members responded with slogans and before Mr Kharge could finish his remarks, Rajya Sabha Speaker CP Radhakrishnan adjourned the House till noon.

When the House reconvened at noon, General Secretary PC Mody read out the report from the Lok Sabha amid continued uproar. The House adjourned almost immediately.

Similar scenes were also witnessed while sitting down after lunch. Opposition MPs started raising slogans right after the proceedings began. Deputy Speaker Harivansh then adjourned the House for the day.

Published – 21 Jul 2026 20:01 IST