Ashoka Students Recount Police Violence, Solidarity at Jantar Mantar Protests

Someday, in the decades to come, there will be two groups of people in India. There will be the people who remember the student protests of the summer of 2026, and there will be the people who can say ‘I was there’. We, the reporters of The Edict, were there.

Jantar Mantar has emerged as the epicenter of the nationwide student protests calling for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan since the 6th of June 2026. It was also the site for the lathi charge and tear gassing against students by the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Delhi Police earlier this week, on Monday, 20th July. Nevertheless, protestors are continuing their peaceful protest and holding fast to their demands. The Edict spoke with fellow students from Ashoka University who were in attendance.

Kriti Chibber (UG’28) speaking about the atmosphere of the movement, said: “Initially, everyone was very cautious, but the more people joined, the more confidence grew. There has been a real sense of community. Even auto-wallahs and bus drivers have been helping warn people about police agitation and have been dropping protestors really close to the barricades.” Chibber was also present during the clashes of July 20th, and described the events as “really brutal”. She and some friends were in Connaught Place, taking a break from the protest, when violence broke out right outside their cafe. “We knew we had to get out,” she said. “We were keeping our heads low, but we got trapped anyway, stuck between RAF officers and Delhi Police. We tried to run inside a KFC outlet, but they weren’t letting us in. We got hit by lathis as well. Finally, some other cafe let us in and gave us first aid.”

Chibber wasn’t alone in experiencing such violence. According to a report by the BBC, at least sixty protestors were injured and seventy more detained on Monday. When asked what kept bringing her and other private university students back, despite the threat of violence, Chibber said - “We have a shared identity as students. Of course, we come from privilege, and were not so directly affected by the NEET Paper leak (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test), but you see people dying by suicide, futures compromised - it is an issue of conscience. You have to stand in solidarity, because there are broader issues that need to be addressed.”

However, even in the wake of police brutality, the sense of community Chibber spoke about persists. Kritin Bhasin (UG’28) spoke about how strangers at Jantar Mantar look out for each other. ‘Have you eaten?’ they ask. ‘Do you have water? Here, you can share with me.’ Bhasin described how this “sense of care” was only heightened on the night of Sunday, the 21st of July, just one day after the clashes with police, as protestors returned in vast numbers and refused to be intimidated. “Jantar Mantar is a site for protest, but it is also a gathering place for the national community that stands by a larger cause. In a time where dissent is treated as anti-state, it is important to note that most of the demands are more anti-specific-policies than anti-state. They are demands for accountability, and to put a stop to the weaponization of state institutions.” Speaking about what brought him to the protest, Bhasin said that he had peers whose lives were influenced by the NEET paper leaks, as well as similar issues with other competitive exams. “I have seen what they’ve gone through. But my privilege means I have access to platforms and resources that mean I can support them in demanding justice and accountability. If you have the privilege to get hold of the mic, you have a duty to pass it and help make people’s voices heard.”

This protest, despite being led by students, has not been limited to them. Parents, teachers, celebrities, and others have been among those who have shown their solidarity with the protestors, feeling that the issue of the youth’s future is an issue which concerns all citizens. One such supporter was Ganesh*, with whom we spoke on Wednesday, 22nd July. He was standing with his cart on the side of the road as protestors marched and shouted slogans, handing out paper cones filled with bhel. “I usually sell bhel in Connaught Place,” he told us. “I moved here when the protest began. The students have my full support in their quest for accountability.” Ganesh was also there on July 20th, during the lathi charge. “Hamare bacchon ke saath gher nainsaafi huyi hai,” he said about the violence. “Savaal hi toh puch rahe the.” (This was a grievous injustice to our children. They were only asking questions.)

The violence of July 20th has been imprinted in the minds of many protestors. Bhasin even described safety measures he and his friends take at the protest, including wearing masks and goggles to protect against teargas, and eyedrops and first aid kits in case they got injured. There is a distinct sense of tension between the protestors and the everpresent companies of RAF (Rapid Action Force), CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force), CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) and Delhi Police. While exiting the protest site late on the evening of July 22nd, we stopped to speak with Mira*, a CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) officer posted at the Janpath metro station which, along with sixteen other stations, had been closed earlier that day. She said that protestors felt a general anger and distrust toward her and fellow officers, but also explained that “not everyone in uniform was involved in the violence.” In fact, she explained that many officers were not even fully informed of the reasons for their deployment to central Delhi. “The protest seemed fine, but we received instructions when we got here about the metro closure.” As of that evening, Mira explained that they were permitting free entry and exit via Janpath station, provided no banners, masks, or placards were carried in full view - they must be kept folded and packed while within the metro station.

Metro stations were closed again on the morning of Friday, 24th July. In a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) posted that seventeen metro stations - namely, Lok Kalyan Marg, Rajiv Chowk, Patel Chowk, Ramakrishna Ashram Marg, Barakhambha Road, Supreme Court, Seva Teerth, Janpath, Mandi House, Central Secretariat, ITO, Delhi Gate, Indraprastha, Khan Market, Jor Bagh, Shivaji Stadium, Jhandewalan - would remain closed from 7:30 am this morning and “till further instructions”. The DMRC assured commuters that “interchange facilities shall remain available at Rajiv Chowk, Mandi House and Central Secretariat” despite the closure.

*Names changed for purposes of anonymity (Edited by Maya Ribeiro.)