- Rahul Gandhi condemned police force against protesting students in Jharkhand
- The comments assume signifiacne as BJP has questioned Gandhi's "silence" over protests in Jharkhand
- Protesters demand reforms in Jharkhand Public Service and Staff Selection Commissions
Underscoring that peaceful protest is a right, Rahul Gandhi on Monday condemned the use of force against protesting students in Jharkhand, acting as a counterweight to the criticism against his INDIA bloc ally.
The comments came as the BJP has repeatedly criticised Gandhi over his "silence" on the students' protest in Jharkhand, which is ruled by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), an ally of Congress in the INDIA bloc.
"The use of force against students protesting in Jharkhand is wrong. Students have a right to peaceful protest, and only dialogue can yield solutions," Gandhi said in a post on X.
"The Jharkhand government must continue to hear these students out and resolve their issues immediately," he said.
झारखंड में विरोध-प्रदर्शन कर रहे छात्रों के ख़िलाफ़ बल का इस्तेमाल ग़लत है।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 10, 2026
छात्रों को शांतिपूर्ण विरोध का अधिकार है और बातचीत से ही समाधान निकल सकता है।
झारखंड सरकार को इन छात्रों की बात सुननी चाहिए और हर समस्या का तुरंत समाधान करना चाहिए।
The use of force against students…
Police used water cannons, lobbed tear gas shells, and lathi-charged job aspirants as they breached barricades and closed in on Jharkhand Assembly premises, protesting alleged irregularities in recruitment exams, mirroring the police crackdown on student protesters in Delhi last month as they led a march on Parliament.
The march, which coincided with the 51st birthday of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, began from outside the old assembly building around 10.30 am as the protest over the recruitment exam irregularities entered the 17th day.
The agitators are demanding comprehensive reforms in the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).
Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM) leader Devendra Nath Mahto, who has been on a fast for nine days over the issue, joined the march in an ambulance. He was seen carrying a portrait of former chief minister Shibu Soren.
Devendra Nath Mahto carrying a picture of Shibu Soren
Objecting to the installation of barbed-wire barricades along the route of the assembly march, Mahto said anger was brewing among students over the injustices done to them.
"The government is hell-bent on suppressing our voice. We will not hold any talks now," he said.
The government has held several rounds of talks with the demonstrators, but failed to break the deadlock. The protesters said the government had agreed to cancel only three of the 13 exams they wanted scrapped.
"My head and legs are hurting, and my head is bleeding," protester Sanjay Mahto, who was injured in a police lathi-charge, told news agency PTI.
Rahul Gandhi's remarks assume importance as the Opposition has been pressing on the demand for Home Minister Amit Shah to appear in Parliament and explain the use of pellet guns in Delhi and AK-47 in Bihar during student protests over examination irregularities.
In a column in the 'The Hindu' today, titled 'Either Culpable or Incompetent', Gandhi points out that the Home Minister has not ordered any inquiry or even issued a statement about the police crackdown on protesters during the July 20 march on Parliament, seeking accountability.
"They were attacked with tear gas shells, beaten with nail-studded lathis and shot with pellet guns," Gandhi said in his column.
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