Rahul Gandhi, Congress MPs detained after paper leak protest outside PM’s doorstep
The main opposition Congress on Tuesday (21 July 2026) took the lead in an anti-government agitation protesting a spate of paper leaks and seeking education reforms, with Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi leading the Congress contingent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s doorstep. They were accompanied by other top opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav.
Stunned, the Delhi Police swung into action, leading to a fight between the two sides. Three hours into the sit-in and after a failed attempt to negotiate with MPs, the police forcefully cleared the area and detained several leaders, including Mr Gandhi, who resisted by lying on the road.
CJP protest LIVE update on 21 July 2026
The Congress MPs continued to be detained at various locations in the capital till going to press. Congress Parliamentary Party President Sonia Gandhi arrived at the Mandir Marg police station where Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was detained along with others. As she was being taken away by the police, Ms Vadra shouted: “Narendra Modi is a coward.” Congress workers staged protests outside the police station.
‘The Beginning of the End’
“Modi ji, try every pressure, use all your strength – this fight for justice for students will not stop or stop,” Mr Gandhi wrote on X when he was detained at the Chattrasal Stadium.
Congress General Secretary (Organization) KC Venugopal told The Hindu from the same place that the true face of the Modi government has been exposed in the last two days. “Yesterday the police attacked the students and today they manipulated the leader of the opposition himself,” Mr. Venugopal said. “This is the beginning of the end of the Modi regime.
A number of BJP leaders criticized the Congress, saying that holding a protest outside the Prime Minister’s residence set a “worrying precedent”, adding that such protests raise serious security concerns.
Meanwhile, a day after Delhi Police cleared the Jantar Mantar, protesters continued to pour in. By evening, the crowds grew and spilled onto the roads leading from the protest site.
VIDEO | Delhi: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was taken away in a police vehicle from the party’s protest site outside the Prime Minister’s residence.
(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvrpG7)#Delhipic.twitter.com/A8XDwmGf7m
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 21, 2026
“Moving the goalposts”
Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitender Singh and Home Minister Govind Mohan were appointed as emissaries to meet with the Congress leadership and spoke to Mr. Gandhi. Dr. Singh accused Mr Gandhi of moving the “goal posts” and said he was in a “conflict mood”. The minister claimed that Mr Gandhi and other Congress leaders had initially said they would clear the area if the government agreed to a detailed debate on the recent spate of paper leaks. However, they later added the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan as a non-negotiable demand, said Dr. Singh.
The Congress rejected the minister’s allegations and insisted that Mr. Gandhi had made four demands: Mr. Pradhan’s resignation; Delhi Police officials who “attacked” the students to hold them accountable and the Prime Minister to make a statement on Monday’s events; the debate on the issue in Parliament; and dropped all charges against the protesters who were detained by the Delhi Police on Monday.
Escalation strategy
A meeting of the INDIA bloc ahead of Tuesday’s (July 21, 2026) session focused on Monday’s protest, with leaders considering several ways to address the issue. No decision has been made. Mr Gandhi, Lok Sabha MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal and members of Mr Gandhi’s core team have decided on a calibrated strategy to keep escalating the protest. Accompanied by other leaders, Mr. Gandhi met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to demand a debate on the issue and later visited the injured students at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.
According to sources, plans for the final march were kept under wraps until the last minute. All Congress MPs have been asked to gather at Mr. Kharge’s residence at 10 Rajaji Marg on his 84th birthday at 3 pm for a “cake cutting”. When Mr. Gandhi arrived at the Congress President’s residence, he informed the assembled MPs that they would be marching to the back entrance of the Prime Minister’s residence, about 100 meters away. Without waiting for their answer, he set off on foot and the deputies followed him. Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar were also asked to protest.
At 3.30 pm, a strong contingent of Congress leaders gathered at the prime minister’s door, surprising Delhi Police officials. Congress then increased its demands. Mr Gandhi demanded the resignation of both the Prime Minister and Home Minister Amit Shah for “destroying the future of India’s youth”.
Raising the stakes
Around 17:00, government emissaries Dr. Singh and Mr. Mohan met Mr. Gandhi in a dharna. In a post on X minutes later, Mr Gandhi raised the stakes further by calling on anyone who believed the students “deserved justice” to join the Congress in a dharna outside the prime minister’s office. “PM Modi believes he can get away with no answers, no consequences. He can’t. Not this time,” he said.
The crowd kept growing and the numbers were being increased by Congress workers and other policemen. The MPs sat in a cross-legged circle and raised slogans against the Prime Minister and the Home Minister as well as the Delhi Police. Mr. Gandhi and Mr. Kharge, among others, stood at the circle.
Resist until the end
At 7 p.m., Delhi Police buses rolled into the area and began loading Congress workers into them, peeling away layer by layer the concentric circles of workers and MPs around Mr. Gandhi.
Mr. Gandhi resisted arrest and lay on the road, even as several policemen dragged him. He kicked away the first attempts to pick him up. After a few minutes of scuffling with the police, he was finally picked up and loaded onto a bus.
Published – 21 Jul 2026 17:09 IST