Punjab Newsline | New Delhi
Senior Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, staged a protest near the Prime Minister's residence on Tuesday, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged paper leak controversy.
The protesters raised slogans against the Central government, calling for the resignation of both the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister. A heavy police presence was deployed at the protest site, and several Congress MPs, including former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, were taken into custody during the demonstration.
The protest was reportedly kept under wraps until Congress leaders had reached within approximately 100 metres of the Prime Minister's residence, after which the media was informed.
Meanwhile, a parallel demonstration by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) continued at Jantar Mantar, where thousands of protesters had gathered by noon. Congress Seva Dal volunteers distributed breakfast to demonstrators earlier in the day.
Tensions also flared in the morning when Delhi Police arrived to strengthen security arrangements. CJP supporters raised slogans against the police, alleging excessive action after officers had dispersed protesters from Jantar Mantar on Monday evening. The demonstrators, however, regrouped at the site later that night.
Separately, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed that activist Sonam Wangchuk be shifted from Safdarjung Hospital to Medanta Hospital for further treatment. The court ordered Medanta to constitute a panel of doctors to oversee his medical care, acting on a petition filed by his wife, Geetanjali Angmo.
