Published Jul 21, 2026 | 7:39 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 21, 2026 | 7:39 PM
A protester holding a placard targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the CJP protest against NEET-UG paper leak. (Photo| Instagram)
Synopsis: Though the CJP leaders have initially limited their demands to the removal of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, over a month, the protests have evolved to question the BJP-led central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demand his resignation.
Protests over the NEET-UG paper leak and other examination irregularities took a crucial turn on Tuesday, 21 July, with demands now shifting from the removal of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, owing to the allegedly brutal violence unleashed by the Delhi police and central forces on the CJP protesters.
Hundreds of protesters, mostly students and youth, taking part in the Parliament march led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on Monday came face-to-face with the brute force of the security forces, who resorted to baton charge, physical assault and tear gas firing to curb the demonstration as it defied restrictions and proceeded towards the Parliament complex.
The crackdown sparked intense reactions from across the nation, while also prompting the Opposition MPs led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to take out a march and stage a sit-in in front of the residence of the prime minister.
Also Read: Protest isn’t a language Narendra Modi’s BJP understands, only electoral outcome is
The Delhi Police have been facing mounting criticism for their use of violence against the protesters, mostly youngsters.
The police crackdown left several protesters with severe injuries, with a young woman being placed on ventilator support at Delhi’s Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital.
In a social media post, the CJP claimed that a 10-year-old was among the victims of the police violence, sharing a video showing an officer slapping the boy while several protesters are seen being beaten up in the background.
The Delhi Police slapping and hitting a 10 year old boy during the protest. pic.twitter.com/OpKVRWg7oS
— Cockroach is Back (@Cockroachisback) July 21, 2026
Visuals widely circulated on social media also show protesters bleeding from their wounds, with some appearing to have sustained injuries to the head. Several of the personnel dressed in CRPF and police uniforms and involved in the violence did not have name plates, raising suspicions. Other visuals also showed security forces taking up firing positions aimed at the Parliament gates with machine guns, while firefighters stood ready with water cannons.
According to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, over 100 protesters have been injured in the police action.
Even as the CJP leaders stressed that their demand is the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the protest expanded to demand the resignation of the Prime Minister.
“Jab jab Modi darta hai, police ko aage karta hai (Whenever Modi is scared, he hides behind the police)”, “Modi teri tanashahi nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi (Modi, your dictatorship is not acceptable)” were some of the slogans used by the protesters during the violent police crackdown on Monday. The placards and graffiti at the protest site also targeted Modi, including those that raised the alleged vote theft and described him as “Vote chor.”
The police action and the sustained indifference of the BJP-led government to the month-long protest also contributed to the mounting resentment against the Prime Minister.
Among those who intensified their criticism of PM Modi was opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who on Tuesday called him the most anti-youth prime minister to have ever ruled the country.
“Prime Minister Modi is the most youth-hostile Prime Minister in India’s history—so youth-hostile that he can’t even demand the resignation of a failed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. 152 paper leaks. 7.5 crore students victimized. And not a single guilty person punished. Who got the punishment? The hardworking youth,” Gandhi said in a post on X.
“And when these children raised legitimate questions about education—they were met with batons and detention in response. The criminals who leaked the papers roam free—and the students raising valid issues are dragged around, beaten. This government isn’t just failing the youth—it’s pouncing on them,” he added.
Expanding their protests and expressing solidarity with the youth affected by the police violence, Opposition MPs on Tuesday staged a sit-in outside the residence of the Prime Minister. They have demanded the resignation of Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
“Prime Minister Modi thinks he can escape without giving answers, without facing any consequences – he won’t be able to, not at all this time. I appeal to every patriotic Indian who believes that our students should get justice – join our dharna in front of the Prime Minister’s residence. The voice of India’s students cannot be ignored. An attack on students is an attack on every Indian family,” Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the protests, said on X.
Also Read: Rahul Gandhi, Kharge lead protest at PM’s residence, seek Modi, Shah and Pradhan’s resignations
Meanwhile, the Delhi police have so far registered five FIRs against the protesters and detained over 70 people.
The FIRs have been filed against unidentified people at Parliament Street, Barakhamba, and Connaught Place police stations under sections related to rioting, damage to government and private property, and assaulting public servants on duty.
According to the Indian Express, the police are also probing whether the protests were part of a “larger conspiracy” to disrupt peace in the national capital.
(Compiled by Fayisa CA)
