Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday refused to withdraw his remarks in the Lok Sabha over the alleged use of force against student protesters during the NEET agitation. He also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to remove Union Home Minister Amit Shah from the Cabinet.
Speaking at a press conference in New Delhi, Gandhi said he would not apologise for raising what he described as an issue of national importance. He claimed that students protesting the alleged NEET paper leak were subjected to excessive police action.
Gandhi claimed that demonstrators were subjected to the use of batons, pellet guns, and other violent weapons. He claimed that one injured student could lose vision in one eye and said he had seen medical documents related to the injury. He also alleged that women and minors were among those affected.
The Congress leader further claimed that he saw Amit Shah communicating with police officials during the protest. He maintained that the Home Minister was aware of the developments on the ground.
The government strongly rejected the allegations. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and Union Minister Jitendra Singh described the claims as baseless and asked Gandhi to provide evidence. The controversy unfolded during the debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, which was later passed in the Lok Sabha by voice vote.