Students March to Indian Parliament Amid Police Brutality

July

2026

On the morning of 18 Jul, an educationist from Ladakh, Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on a hunger strike for 21 days at the protest site Jantar Mantar (JM), New Delhi, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, was surreptitiously picked up and detained by Delhi police, Rapid Action Force, and the Central Reserve Police Force. Wangchuk was taken and confined to Safdarjang Hospital, New Delhi without his consent. ‘I stand with Sonam Wangchuk’ posts began circulating on social media. Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke had given a nationwide call, Sansad Chalo, to march to the Indian Parliament on 20 Jul, the first day of its monsoon session. On 19 Jul, hundreds of thousands of students and parents from across India began reaching Delhi. Actors Shabana Azmi and Prakash Raj, and social activist Yogender Yadav joined the crowd and spent the night at JM. Police turned JM into an open jail by welding the barricades together. No one could come out or go in. Protesters kept streaming into Delhi and spent the night on Janpath near Parliament Street. On 20 Jul, upon repeated requests, three students from the All India Students' Association Neha, Amin, and Manish, ended their hunger strike. CJP was denied permission for the protest march. While CJP leaders were in dialogue with the government, the crowds began marching towards the Parliament. Police tear-gassed and cane-charged the protesters throughout the day, who took over central Delhi. Some took refuge at Gurdwara Bangla Sahib. Protests were held in various Indian cities, including Chandigarh. The cries of the protestors still did not reach the Parliament. The moment Opposition parties brought up the students’ protest, the Speaker would adjourn the Parliament. Wangchuk, who had earlier decided to discontinue his hunger strike upon the government promising him to bring the matter of exam paper leaks to discussion in Parliament, announced he would continue his hunger strike. By 9.30 pm, the police had destroyed the protest site at JM. However, hours later, students and the CJP had reinstated the protest site, including the stage. Azad Samaj Party chief and Nagina Member of Parliament Chandrashekhar Azad staged a sit-in protest near the statue of celebrated jurist and reformer Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, inside the Parliament premises demanding accountability over the action taken against the protesters. The protest continues (earlier coverage).