Priyanka Gandhi targets Modi over student protests in Lok Sabha

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi criticised the government during the Lok Sabha debate on the Public Examinations Amendment Bill, raising concerns over student protests, paper leaks, unemployment and education reforms. She urged accountability and called for measures to rebuild youth trust

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to change his “dil ka angle” instead of camera angles if he wants to win over Gen Z, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi told Parliament on Tuesday in a sharp barb over his Instagram outreach to student protesters last week.

Priyanka Gandhi also launched a stinging attack on the government over the lathi-charge on students, saying every ‘lathi’ blow on any boy or girl hurt the government’s prestige more than the backs of the students.

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“Why was it necessary to fire tear gas shells at students, to rain lathis on them? Why was it necessary to humiliate young girls by tearing their clothes, to have them beaten mercilessly? Why was it necessary to fire pellet guns and AK-47s at the country’s youth? Are they terrorists?” the Congress general secretary asked while participating in a discussion in the Lok Sabha on ‘The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill 2026’.

“Today, these questions are being asked not just by the Congress party, but by the entire nation, and the responsibility to answer them lies with the government. Why does this government fear the country’s youth? Who gave it the right to suppress their voices?” she said.

Priyanka Gandhi also dismissed the government’s announcement of setting up fast-track courts to deal with paper leaks, saying fast-track courts already have a very poor record.

“Blaming the opposition in Parliament and playing hollow political games won’t work. If the Prime Minister wants to win over Gen Z, then making videos with different camera angles will not help. The Prime Minister needs to change his ‘dil ka angle’, not the angle of cameras,” she said.

“This new generation is aware and has an immense capacity to recognise lies. To win their hearts, PM Modi will have to step onto the path of truth,” Priyanka Gandhi said.

Under Modi’s governance, grave “injustice and barbarity” has been done to the youth, she alleged.

“Accept this truth, take responsibility, take concrete steps, and consult experts and take all stakeholders along to prepare a new education system after deep consultations… PM Modi will have to take steps to create employment. Education and healthcare must expand in the country, so that children can dream of a bright future,” she said.

In her 29-minute speech, Priyanka Gandhi also said students can be removed from the streets, but not their questions.

“Every ‘lathi’ blow on any boy or girl hurt the government’s prestige more than the backs of the students. The youth of the country are demanding justice, not charity. They had come not to topple the government, but to redeem their trust,” she said.

Home Minister Amit Shah and Modi will have to answer who gave the order to attack the children with pellet guns, she asked, adding that the question is being asked by the entire country.

Priyanka Gandhi said the demands of the protesting students were that action should be taken against those who leaked exam papers, the education system should be reformed, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should resign, and action should be taken against those who brutalised students, along with an apology being issued.

The country’s education system is riddled with numerous flaws and many children, under pressure, end up taking their own lives, while others slip into depression, she said.

“There is rampant unemployment. The government has weakened the sectors that generate employment. Today, the country’s exam system has completely failed. In the last 10 years, 152 paper leaks occurred, and the lives of 7.5 crore students were toyed with, but not a single mafia has been punished,” she said.

Priyanka Gandhi pointed out that the country’s education budget is Rs 1.40 lakh crore, but in NEET, Rs 1.32 lakh crore are extracted every year from the families of 22 lakh students.

“Where our education budget is Rs 1.4 lakh crore, the government waives Rs 16 lakh crore in debt for a handful of billionaires, which shows what the government’s priorities are,” she said.

The Congress leader asserted that the trust of the country’s youth in this entire system has been shattered.

“To restore this trust, answers cannot be found from within the system. One must step outside the boundaries of the system; concrete steps must be taken. But unfortunately, the Modi government is unable to understand this. The government still believes that their boat will cross the seas with the help of PR and pet media,” she said.

In her remarks, Priyanka Gandhi also lashed out at BJP MPs for welcoming Pradhan in the Parliament premises after his resignation as if a “superstar” had arrived.

“While all this was happening, a family in Maharashtra was mourning the suicide of their daughter, a victim of a paper leak. What exactly is the government so proud of? Where there should have been shame in their eyes, there was a welcome with garlands and flowers,” she said.

There was a ruckus and brief disturbance in the House over her comments about the new Education Minister Pralhad Joshi.

In her remarks, Priyanka Gandhi also took a swipe at the government over the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

“We have witnessed massive thefts under your rule: the theft of votes during elections, the theft of Ram Mandir donations, the theft of national assets by your industrialist friends, and the theft of farmers’ land, but the greatest theft of all occurred when the dreams of the nation’s youth were stolen,” she said.

“If the country’s youth become despondent and their hopes are shattered, it will mean a defeat for India. We in the Congress are prepared to lay down our lives, but we will not allow India to face defeat,” Priyanka Gandhi asserted.

The Congress general secretary said the government needs to take concrete steps by taking all stakeholders along to put a new education system in place.

Ending a week-long logjam, the Lok Sabha on Tuesday began a discussion on the anti-paper leak Bill, with Union Minister Jitendra Singh describing it as a reaffirmation of the government’s commitment to safeguard the welfare of students and youth.