In India, fear has switched sides

What the report says

Al Jazeera published an opinion article by investigative journalist Vidya Krishnan on July 23, 2026, describing a student-led protest in New Delhi that has expanded from demands over education reform into a broader political challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. The piece says students led by the Cockroach Janta Party have been camped at Jantar Mantar for more than a month, initially seeking reforms and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, before adding calls for Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to step down.

According to the article, tensions escalated around a planned march to Parliament at the start of the monsoon session after activist Sonam Wangchuk, on hunger strike in support of the students since June 28, was forcibly taken to Safdarjung Hospital. Krishnan writes that large crowds entered central Delhi despite police warnings, metro station closures, road barricades and internet disruption. The piece reports that at least 200 people were injured and alleges police used tear gas, batons and pellet guns, with footage showing misconduct by officers.

The article says the protest spread to other Indian cities, with support from opposition parties, families affected by exam-leak-related suicides, farmers from Punjab and volunteer doctors and donors. Modi has announced fast-track courts for exam-leak cases, but the piece says the government has not apologised for the crackdown or announced investigations into alleged excessive force.

The article is explicitly opinionated and frames the unrest as the biggest crisis of Modi’s political career, linking it to earlier protests over the Citizenship Amendment Act and farmers’ demonstrations. Those broader judgments are the author’s analysis, not independent reporting by 256 Newsroom.