New Delhi, July 22: The Delhi Police denied claims of stone-pelting and police action circulating on social media, calling the videos and allegations “false and misleading” and urging citizens not to share unverified information.

In a post on X, DCP New Delhi said, “There are various videos circulating on social media claiming incidents of stone pelting and police action today. These claims are false and misleading. No such incident has taken place today. Citizens are requested not to believe or share such videos and are advised to rely only on official sources for authentic information and updates.”

The clarification came as protesters remained at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday, continuing their demonstration a day after clashes broke out between demonstrators and security forces in Delhi during the ‘Sansad Chalo’ march.

Thousands of supporters of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and students had marched from Jantar Mantar towards Parliament on Monday, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities, including the NEET-UG paper leak controversy.

The police had imposed prohibitory orders and placed barricades along the route to prevent the march from reaching Parliament.

After security personnel dismantled the protest stage and tents at Jantar Mantar, demonstrators returned to the site on Tuesday following a call from the CJP to continue the agitation. A heavy deployment of Delhi Police and Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel remained in place at the protest venue.

CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said the protesters would continue their agitation until their demand for Pradhan’s resignation was addressed. Speaking to media, Ranka alleged that protesters, including students and volunteers, faced police action during Monday’s confrontation and claimed that several people were injured.

He said the movement would continue and attract more participants following what he described as the “brutality” of the police action. Ranka also alleged that women protesters, including Geetanjali J. Angmo, the wife of activist Sonam Wangchuk, were mistreated during the clashes.

New Delhi, July 21: Police forcibly removed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and several opposition MPs from their dharna site near Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official residence in New Delhi on Tuesday, after they marched towards Lok Kalyan Marg demanding action over alleged examination paper leaks and police action against student protesters.

Rahul Gandhi, who sat on the road refusing to leave, was surrounded by several police personnel before being escorted into a police vehicle along with other opposition leaders. The protest came a day after a students’ march to Parliament witnessed police intervention.

Earlier, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi led party workers from Kharge’s residence to the Prime Minister’s residence, intensifying the opposition’s campaign on education-related issues. Before being detained, Rahul appealed to people to join the dharna, saying, “An attack on students is an attack on every Indian family,” and accused the government of failing to answer concerns raised by students.

In a significant development, Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh met Rahul Gandhi at the protest site. Congress leaders said the talks remained inconclusive as the party insisted on the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and a discussion in Parliament on alleged examination paper leaks.

Congress MP Syed Naseer Hussain said the party would continue its protest until its demands were met. Jitendra Singh, however, maintained that the government was ready to hold a discussion in Parliament on education-related issues and alleged that the Congress later made the minister’s resignation a precondition.

The Congress has also demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah apologise or resign over the police action against protesters during Monday’s march. The protest received support from opposition leaders, including NCP(SP) MP Supriya Sule, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, NCP(SP) president Sharad Pawar and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, signalling broader opposition backing for the agitation.

New Delhi, July 21: Amid the Opposition’s criticism over the violence during the NEET-UG paper leak protest, the National Democratic Alliance leaders on Tuesday came in support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that the government took swift action over the exam irregularities, asserting that the Centre stands with the country’s ‘Yuva Shakti’ (youth power).

During the NDA’s ‘Mangal Milan’ programme, PM Modi stated that the issue of paper leaks is “not limited” to a single state or the Central government; rather, it is a “matter of concern for the entire nation”, while adding that the government has acted promptly, resulting in the arrest of 13 individuals related to the case so far.

Responding to the same, Union Minister and Republican Party of India (A) chief Ramdas Athawale said: “The Prime Minister has explained about the NEET exam that whatever has happened is not right, and lakhs of students have faced difficulties. Those who have made such an attempt have all been caught, and they should be punished severely.”

“He (Prime Minister) has said that along with the Central government, it is also the responsibility of the state governments and their administration to ensure that such instances don’t occur during exams,” Athawale told media outside Parliament House.

He asserted that the “government stands with Yuva Shakti”.

“We are in the government due to the youths. Whatever Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is saying is baseless,” the Union Minister added.

NCP MP Praful Patel added that Prime Minister Modi “heavily praised” the youth power of India.

“To further promote this youth power and keep their future secure, we should take all possible steps. Incidents like NEET and other such events that have occurred should never be repeated; we have taken a resolve for this too. The contribution of India’s youth, from space to every field, has been greatly praised by PM Modi,” he told media.

Further, BJP MP Ravi Kishan said: “PM Modi has given a big message that the best legal counsel in the country should be hired to ensure that all those involved (in paper leaks) are severely punished so that going ahead no one dares to mess with the future of the children in the nation, just to earn a few lakhs of rupees.”

However, AIMIM chief and MP Asaduddin Owaisi questioned the Centre, asking, “What about the students who died? What about those who had to reappear for the exam but could not secure the same rank? Their time has already been lost. What will you do for them?”

This comes a day after scores of students, led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), attempted to march to Parliament demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for the May 3 NEET paper leak.