Haryana Congress leaders detained during Raj Bhavan protest

Police in Chandigarh on Tuesday detained Haryana Congress president Rao Narender Singh, state in-charge Sanjay Dutt and 18 Congress legislators after they attempted to march towards the Haryana Raj Bhavan in protest against the detention of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi.

The Congress said the march was intended to register its protest over the police action against Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders who were detained in Delhi while demanding a parliamentary discussion on the alleged NEET paper leak and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

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Soon after the procession left the party’s state headquarters, police stopped the march and escorted the leaders to Sector 17 Police Station, where several legislators staged a sit-in and raised slogans against the administration.

Thanesar MLA Ashok Arora said the party had planned to meet at the Congress office before marching peacefully to Raj Bhavan to submit a memorandum. “We intended to hold a peaceful protest and present our concerns before the Governor, but we were stopped before we could even reach our destination,” he said.

The Chandigarh protest followed demonstrations in the national capital, where Rahul Gandhi and several Congress MPs were detained near the Prime Minister’s residence while pressing for accountability over the alleged examination paper leak.

Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Singh Surjewala, who was also detained in Delhi, accused the Centre of attempting to suppress democratic protests. “This movement will only grow stronger. You can detain us or send us to jail, but the demand for accountability over the paper leak will not stop,” he said, adding that repeated examination irregularities had shattered the aspirations of thousands of students.

Congress leaders said the alleged paper leak had deeply affected students and their families and argued that the government should address their concerns through dialogue instead of police action.

Outside Parliament, Congress MPs from Haryana, including Deepender Hooda, Varun Mulana, Jai Prakash and Satpal Brahmachari, also staged a demonstration in support of the party’s demand for greater transparency in the examination system.

Meanwhile, Panchkula Congress president Sanjay Chauhan alleged that students protesting over the issue had faced police action, and that opposition leaders were also prevented from marching in Delhi. “The government should engage with students instead of trying to silence peaceful protests,” he said.

The Congress maintained that its proposed march to Raj Bhavan was intended to submit a memorandum to the President through the Governor, accusing the BJP-led Centre of curbing democratic dissent. The BJP has rejected similar allegations in the past and defended its handling of the examination controversy.