Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday accused the Congress and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi of “exploiting students as political tools to manufacture disruption” during the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

His statements came after Rahul Gandhi, along with Congress MP and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav were detained by the Delhi Police during a protest outside the prime minister’s residence. They were released hours later.

The Opposition leaders had held the demonstration against the police lathi-charging protesters and firing tear gas shells at them during the political campaign Cockroach Janta Party’s march to Parliament on Monday.

The march was held to demand the resignation of Pradhan for the alleged mismanagement of competitive examinations.

Here’s more on this and other top updates:

Students deserve certainty over chaos: Pradhan

  • In a social media post on Tuesday night, Pradhan said that the Union government “remains 100% committed” to discussing the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for medical admissions and “addressing every genuine concern of our youth” in Parliament.
  • Criticising the Congress, the education minister said that the students of India “deserve far better than being treated as props in a political campaign”. “They deserve certainty over chaos, solutions over slogans and responsibility over disruption,” he added. “We owe our students more than outrage. We owe them answers, reforms and accountability.”
  • He claimed that despite the Union government agreeing to a “comprehensive discussion”, the Congress “chose political spectacle over democratic debate”. Pradhan further alleged that Rahul Gandhi was “manufacturing confrontation after every genuine avenue for discussion has been opened”.

Opposition leaders released

  • Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Yadav and other Opposition leaders detained during their protest were released by the police late on Tuesday, reported ANI.
  • While Rahul Gandhi had been detained at the Chhatrasal Stadium in North Delhi, Vadra was taken to the Mandir Marg Police Station. Party leader Sonia Gandhi had later arrived at the Mandir Marg Police Station, where other MPs were also detained.

CJP says protesting only at Jantar Mantar

  • After hundreds of persons gathered in central Delhi’s Connaught Place and adjoining areas on Tuesday evening, the Cockroach Janta Party stated that its demonstration was only being held at the designated protest site at Jantar Mantar. The campaign added that it had not given a call for protesters to assemble anywhere else.

  • “We received reports that some goons may have been sent to other parts of Delhi to create nuisance,” stated the campaign’s founder, Abhijeet Dipke. “They are NOT with Cockroach Janta Party.”

  • Earlier in the day, Cockroach Janta Party spokesperson Saurav Das said that he and other leaders of the campaign would stage a sit-in outside the Delhi Police headquarters, alleging that those detained on Monday were not being allowed to meet their lawyers. He also alleged that the Cockroach Janta Party had not been provided a complete list of detainees.

  • However, in the evening, Das said that all the detainees had been released, following which the planned protest outside the Delhi Police headquarters was called off.
  • Meanwhile, Union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh met with activist Sonam Wangchuk at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, PTI quoted unidentified officials as saying on Wednesday. Wangchuk, who has been on a hunger strike as part of the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest, was moved to the facility from the Safdarjung Hospital earlier in the day following directions from the Delhi High Court.

Written by Sneha. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.