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GLOBAL DESK · SOUTH ASIA BUREAU
Live
DELHI: Tear gas fired as marchers close in on Parliament  •  Five Metro stations shut for security  •  Activist’s wife alleges assault by police  •  Hunger strikers end 23-day fast  •  Government offers backchannel talks     DELHI: Tear gas fired as marchers close in on Parliament  •  Five Metro stations shut for security  •  Activist’s wife alleges assault by police  •  Hunger strikers end 23-day fast  •  Government offers backchannel talks
LIVE — UPDATED 4:51 PM IST, JUL 20, 2026

Tear Gas, Baton Charges as Thousands Push Toward India’s Parliament Over Exam-Leak Scandal

A student-led movement calling itself the Cockroach Janta Party tried to march on Parliament
in New Delhi on Monday, demanding an education minister’s ouster and compensation for students who died
after a national medical entrance exam was leaked. Security forces met the crowds with tear gas and
batons within 200 metres of the building.

AMERICA NEWS WORLD Global Desk · Delhi coverage

By The Numbers

5Metro stations shut
23Days of hunger strike
~20KAt Sunday night vigil
10–15Reported detentions

What protesters are demanding

Organizers say they want three things: the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan,
the immediate release of hospitalized activist Sonam Wangchuk, and roughly ₹1 crore in compensation
for each medical-entrance-exam candidate who died after last year’s leak of the NEET-UG paper.

Clashes On The Ground

Morning — Mandi House to Jantar Mantar

Police used sticks and batons to break up hundreds of students and young activists walking
toward the Jantar Mantar rally point, witnesses said, with no immediate statement from police on
the use of force.

Midday — Parliament Street Barricades

Security personnel baton-charged crowds after protesters tried to push through barricades in
the high-security zone around midday; officials said a scuffle left both protesters and police
with minor injuries, and roughly a dozen people were detained.

Afternoon — Rafi Marg & India Gate

A sit-in at Rafi Marg was cleared by police, and the crowd — including children — regrouped at
the India Gate lawns, where police vehicles were driven onto the grass to disperse them.

Evening — Raisina Road, 200m From Parliament

By late afternoon, marchers had pushed to within 200 metres of Parliament on Raisina Road before
tear gas shells were fired to stop them, on the opening day of the Monsoon Session.

Fig. 1 — Reported tear gas and baton-charge incidents, by time of day
“India’s youth have shown that they’re not like the Gen Z of other countries.”
— Gitanjali Angmo, activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, addressing the crowd at Jantar Mantar

City Under Lockdown

Delhi Metro shut five stations — Janpath, Rajiv Chowk, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat and Seva
Teerth — citing security, though interchange access stayed open at two of them. Mobile internet was
also suspended in parts of central Delhi, which organizers said was hampering their ability to post
live updates. A prohibitory order under Section 163 of the BNSS was in force across New Delhi district,
barring gatherings of five or more people outside the designated Jantar Mantar site.

Fig. 2 — Delhi Metro station access, Jul 20

Key Figures & Negotiations

Sonam Wangchuk

The hospitalized activist, whose supporters make up much of the movement, wrote to Safdarjung
Hospital’s director asking to be discharged so he could join the march, arguing his vital signs were
stable enough to leave. Hospital authorities instead said his blood work still called for close
monitoring and kept him under observation. His wife has separately gone to the Delhi High Court
seeking his transfer to a private hospital of the family’s choosing.

Talks With The Government

Movement spokespeople Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka spent over two hours waiting before a short
meeting with Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, where they handed over their written demands. Nadda
reportedly said he would raise the issues internally but made no firm commitments. Organizers say they
had turned down earlier offers to negotiate with more junior officials, holding out for talks with
the Prime Minister or a full Cabinet minister.

Hunger Strike Ends — For Three

Three student hunger strikers linked to the All India Students’ Association broke their 23-day
fast on Monday after appeals from a delegation of MPs, a senior advocate, an academic and two film
actors. The group said it would keep up pressure through a month-long campaign targeting the
education minister and exam authorities instead.

AMERICA NEWS WORLD
GLOBAL DESK · SOUTH ASIA BUREAU
Live
DELHI: Tear gas fired as marchers close in on Parliament  •  Five Metro stations shut for security  •  Activist’s wife alleges assault by police  •  Hunger strikers end 23-day fast  •  Government offers backchannel talks     DELHI: Tear gas fired as marchers close in on Parliament  •  Five Metro stations shut for security  •  Activist’s wife alleges assault by police  •  Hunger strikers end 23-day fast  •  Government offers backchannel talks
LIVE — UPDATED 4:51 PM IST, JUL 20, 2026

Tear Gas, Baton Charges as Thousands Push Toward India’s Parliament Over Exam-Leak Scandal

A student-led movement calling itself the Cockroach Janta Party tried to march on Parliament
in New Delhi on Monday, demanding an education minister’s ouster and compensation for students who died
after a national medical entrance exam was leaked. Security forces met the crowds with tear gas and
batons within 200 metres of the building.

AMERICA NEWS WORLD Global Desk · Delhi coverage

By The Numbers

5Metro stations shut
23Days of hunger strike
~20KAt Sunday night vigil
10–15Reported detentions

What protesters are demanding

Organizers say they want three things: the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan,
the immediate release of hospitalized activist Sonam Wangchuk, and roughly ₹1 crore in compensation
for each medical-entrance-exam candidate who died after last year’s leak of the NEET-UG paper.

Clashes On The Ground

Morning — Mandi House to Jantar Mantar

Police used sticks and batons to break up hundreds of students and young activists walking
toward the Jantar Mantar rally point, witnesses said, with no immediate statement from police on
the use of force.

Midday — Parliament Street Barricades

Security personnel baton-charged crowds after protesters tried to push through barricades in
the high-security zone around midday; officials said a scuffle left both protesters and police
with minor injuries, and roughly a dozen people were detained.

Afternoon — Rafi Marg & India Gate

A sit-in at Rafi Marg was cleared by police, and the crowd — including children — regrouped at
the India Gate lawns, where police vehicles were driven onto the grass to disperse them.

Evening — Raisina Road, 200m From Parliament

By late afternoon, marchers had pushed to within 200 metres of Parliament on Raisina Road before
tear gas shells were fired to stop them, on the opening day of the Monsoon Session.

Fig. 1 — Reported tear gas and baton-charge incidents, by time of day
“India’s youth have shown that they’re not like the Gen Z of other countries.”
— Gitanjali Angmo, activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, addressing the crowd at Jantar Mantar

City Under Lockdown

Delhi Metro shut five stations — Janpath, Rajiv Chowk, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat and Seva
Teerth — citing security, though interchange access stayed open at two of them. Mobile internet was
also suspended in parts of central Delhi, which organizers said was hampering their ability to post
live updates. A prohibitory order under Section 163 of the BNSS was in force across New Delhi district,
barring gatherings of five or more people outside the designated Jantar Mantar site.

Fig. 2 — Delhi Metro station access, Jul 20

Key Figures & Negotiations

Sonam Wangchuk

The hospitalized activist, whose supporters make up much of the movement, wrote to Safdarjung
Hospital’s director asking to be discharged so he could join the march, arguing his vital signs were
stable enough to leave. Hospital authorities instead said his blood work still called for close
monitoring and kept him under observation. His wife has separately gone to the Delhi High Court
seeking his transfer to a private hospital of the family’s choosing.

Talks With The Government

Movement spokespeople Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka spent over two hours waiting before a short
meeting with Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, where they handed over their written demands. Nadda
reportedly said he would raise the issues internally but made no firm commitments. Organizers say they
had turned down earlier offers to negotiate with more junior officials, holding out for talks with
the Prime Minister or a full Cabinet minister.

Hunger Strike Ends — For Three

Three student hunger strikers linked to the All India Students’ Association broke their 23-day
fast on Monday after appeals from a delegation of MPs, a senior advocate, an academic and two film
actors. The group said it would keep up pressure through a month-long campaign targeting the
education minister and exam authorities instead.