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Published : 21 Jul 2026, 08:34 PM
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been detained by police after leading a march to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence over India's paper leak controversy, according to NDTV.
The Indian news outlet reported that Gandhi was later seen bleeding from his nose as police removed him from the protest site.
The protest on Tuesday came a day after demonstrations by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) over alleged examination paper leaks.
Rahul, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka led party workers towards the prime minister's residence in New Delhi, demanding accountability from the government.
According to NDTV, Congress sources had indicated that Rahul planned to continue an overnight sit-in outside the prime minister's residence.
However, police removed him and other opposition leaders, including Priyanka and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, around 6:40pm.
The broadcaster reported that Rahul, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, sat on the road and refused to leave before being surrounded by several police officers and dragged away.
Before police broke up the protest, he appealed for wider public support.
"An attack on students is an attack on every Indian family. PM Modi believes he can get away without answers, without consequences. He cannot. Not this time. I ask every patriotic Indian who believes our students deserve justice -- join us in dharna in front of the Prime Minister's residence. The voice of India's students will not be ignored," he was quoted as saying by NDTV.
The march began outside Congress president Kharge's residence before proceeding towards 7 Lok Kalyan Marg, the prime minister's official residence.
In an unusual development, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh visited the protest site and held talks with Rahul.
Congress leaders told NDTV the discussions ended without a breakthrough.
"They wanted us to withdraw the protest and we did not agree because our demands were not met. We want Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign and a discussion in parliament on the paper leaks. More MPs, more Congress workers and more common people will join our protest," Congress MP Syed Naseer Hussain was quoted as saying.
Singh later claimed on X that Rahul had initially agreed to end the protest if Parliament debated the paper leak issue, but later added a fresh demand for the education minister's resignation.
Police began clearing the protest shortly after Singh's statement, NDTV reported.
The Congress said the demonstration was sparked by Monday's student-led march organised by the CJP, during which protesters were allegedly baton-charged and tear-gassed.
Police, however, accused demonstrators of violence, claiming 118 officers were injured.
As the protest unfolded, Rahul accused the government of refusing to answer for what he described as the “brutalities” against students and demanded the resignations of Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
"We have marched to PM Modi's house to demand answers from him for the brutalities against young students [on Monday]. The government doesn't want to take any accountability nor does it want to have a debate on it in parliament. The PM and [home minister] must resign for destroying the future of India's youth."
The Indian news outlet said additional police contingents were deployed around the prime minister's residence as the Bharatiya Janata Party accused the Congress of compromising the premier's security.
Congress leaders rejected the allegation, insisting the protest had remained peaceful.
The developments came as parliament was adjourned for a second consecutive day after opposition parties sought discussions on the paper leak controversy and the police action against protesters.
