Priyanka Gandhi Targets Centre Over Police Action, Education System During Lok Sabha Debate
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra launched a blistering attack on the Centre during the Lok Sabha debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, raising questions over the alleged use of force against students protesting the NEET paper leak and accusing the government of failing to protect the country’s education system.
Referring to the protests held in Delhi on July 20, Priyanka Gandhi questioned why security personnel allegedly used pellet guns and AK-47 rifles against students demanding accountability over examination irregularities.
“What was the need to unleash pellet guns and AK-47s on the country’s youth? Were they terrorists? Who gave the order to use pellet guns? Was it the Prime Minister? Was it the Home Minister? They must answer. The entire nation is asking. It is not just the Congress party; the entire nation is demanding an answer,” she said during the debate.
She further pressed the government to disclose who authorised the use of force, asking, “Who gave the orders to use pellet guns and suppress students’ voices?” while demanding answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
‘Education System Has Failed’
Turning her attention to the examination system, Priyanka Gandhi alleged that repeated paper leaks had eroded the confidence of students across the country.
“The education system has developed flaws. The exam system has failed. Not a single mafia member has been punished,” she said, accusing the government of failing to act against those allegedly involved in examination fraud.
She also claimed that the country’s education framework had been systematically weakened.
According to the Congress leader, the Centre had hollowed out the education system by appointing RSS pracharaks to important positions and centralising examinations under the National Testing Agency (NTA). She further alleged that education spending had not kept pace with the sector’s growing needs and argued that shrinking employment opportunities had left young people facing an uncertain future.
Priyanka also claimed that 152 paper leak incidents over the past decade had affected crores of students, alleging that despite repeated controversies, not a single member of the alleged paper leak mafia had been punished.
House Erupts Over Remarks on Education Minister
The debate turned heated after Priyanka Gandhi criticised the appointment of Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi, alleging that the Prime Minister had appointed “a person who expressed consent and even happiness over the release of those convicted of raping a pregnant woman.”
Her remarks sparked loud protests from Treasury Bench members.
Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju objected strongly, calling the statement defamatory.
“This amounts to character assassination within Parliament, and we do not expect such language. These statements should be expunged from the record. Such language should not be used. She should apologise to the House,” Rijiju said.
The exchange added to the political confrontation as the Opposition continued to target the government over alleged lapses in public examinations and the handling of student protests during the discussion on the amendment bill.
