New Delhi, Jul 30: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday called for the formation of an independent, Supreme Court monitored high powered committee to investigate the alleged use of excessive force against students during recent protests across the country.
In a post on social media platform X, the Congress leader said students deserve justice and urged the judiciary to ensure an impartial investigation into what he described as “brutalities” committed against protesters. Along with his statement, Gandhi shared a video purportedly showing police personnel using force against student demonstrators.
The demand comes in the wake of the July 20 protest march towards Parliament led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), during which security forces dispersed demonstrators. Similar protests in several other parts of the country also witnessed clashes between protesters and law enforcement agencies.
Rahul Gandhi maintained that an independent judicially supervised probe was necessary to establish accountability and restore public confidence. According to him, students exercising their democratic right to protest should not be subjected to excessive force, and any alleged violations must be examined through a transparent investigation.
The Congress leader had earlier intensified his criticism by demanding the removal of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He alleged that the alleged use of pellet guns and force against student protesters reflected serious administrative failure.
Gandhi argued that if such actions were carried out under the directions of the Home Ministry, responsibility must be fixed. He further claimed that if the Home Minister was unaware of the alleged actions, it raised questions about the functioning of the ministry.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, strongly rejected the allegations and accused the Congress MP of misleading the public. Party leaders asserted that Rahul Gandhi’s statements were politically motivated and lacked factual basis.
The BJP also alleged that the Congress leader had made unfounded claims inside and outside Parliament and demanded that he apologise for what it termed the misuse of parliamentary proceedings to level accusations against the government.
The exchange has further escalated the political confrontation between the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress over the handling of recent student protests. The issue has become a major point of debate in Parliament, with opposition parties seeking accountability over police action, while the government has defended the measures taken to maintain law and order.
As demands for an independent investigation continue, attention is now focused on whether any judicial or institutional mechanism will be constituted to examine the allegations arising from the recent protests.