Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday (February 26, 2026) strongly criticised the police action against his party’s youth wing activists over the “shirtless protest”, drawing a sharp parallel between Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and the authoritarian regime in North Korea.
“This is India, not North Korea,” Mr. Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said in a post in Hindi on X and asserted that peaceful protest is the soul of democracy and not a crime.
He said the world’s largest democracy is being slowly pushed in a direction where dissent is labelled as treason and asking questions is called a conspiracy.
When those in power start seeing themselves as the nation and dissent as the enemy — that is when democracy dies, Mr. Gandhi said.
“In today’s India, under the rule of a compromised PM, peaceful protest has been turned into the biggest crime. The world’s largest democracy is being slowly pushed in a direction where dissent is labelled as treason and asking questions is called a conspiracy,” the former Congress chief said.
“Think about it, no matter the issue, if you raise your voice against those in power through constitutional means, then batons, lawsuits, and jail are almost a certainty,” he said.
Youth tormented by paper leaks raised their voices for their future and were met with blows from batons, he claimed.
“The country’s proud women wrestlers demanded a fair investigation into serious allegations against a powerful BJP leader. Their cries were defamed, their movement crushed, and they were forcibly removed from the streets.
“A peaceful demonstration took place at India Gate in support of a rape victim. The demand for justice was deemed an inconvenience to the system and dispersed,” Mr. Gandhi said.
When the Youth Congress peacefully protested against a U.S. Trade deal harmful to the country, they were branded “anti-national” and arrested, he said.
When ordinary people stood up against poisonous air, even concerns for the environment were dismissed as “politics” and suppressed, Mr. Gandhi said, adding that when farmers protested for their rights, they too were labelled anti-national.
“Tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannons, and batons — these became the means of dialogue. When tribals stood up for their rights to water, forests, and land, suspicion was cast upon them too — as if demanding one’s rights is a crime. What kind of democracy is this, where a Compromised PM fears questions? Where crushing dissent is becoming the nature of governance?” he said.
Asking questions is not democracy’s weakness, it is its strength, he said.
“Democracy grows stronger when the government listens to criticism, responds, and remains accountable. Modi ji, this is India, not North Korea. When those in power start seeing themselves as the nation and dissent as the enemy — that is when democracy dies,” Mr. Gandhi said.
His remarks came after a high-voltage standoff between the police teams of Delhi and Shimla came to an end following a dramatic 24 hours on Thursday (February 26, 2026) morning, after the Delhi Police team was finally cleared to head back to the national capital along with the three Youth Congress activists arrested in connection with the “shirtless protest” at the AI Summit.
The “shirtless protest” at Bharat Mandapam on February 20 prompted a significant security response, with police earlier invoking charges including rioting and promoting enmity under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president, Uday Bhanu Chib, and former national spokesperson, Bhudev Sharma, were arrested in connection with the case on Tuesday (February 24, 2026). Both were subsequently produced before a Delhi court and remanded to police custody for interrogation.
According to the Delhi Police, a total of 11 people have been arrested so far.
On Saturday (February 21, 2026) midnight, Delhi Police raided Himachal Sadan in the national capital amid reports that IYC workers who had participated in the protest were provided accommodation there.
Published – February 26, 2026 05:03 pm IST
