Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Jul 30: Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday held Union Home Minister Amit Shah responsible for the alleged use of force against students during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, demanding that he apologise and resign.

Participating in the debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, Kharge said stricter penalties, special task forces and fast-track courts alone would not prevent paper leaks. He maintained that the focus should be on ensuring secure conduct of examinations and preventing question papers from being leaked in the first place.

Kharge also questioned why the government had not introduced stronger safeguards in 2024, when the Opposition had first raised concerns over examination leaks.

During his speech, Kharge's remarks on Manusmriti triggered a storm in the Upper House. He alleged that the text had promoted caste discrimination in education, drawing sharp protests from Treasury Bench members.

Union Minister JP Nadda termed the remarks divisive and urged the Chair to expunge them from the House records. BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi also criticised Kharge, alleging that he had made misleading claims by referring to a text other than the original Manusmriti.

As the exchanges intensified, Opposition members raised "maafi, maafi" slogans, while Treasury Bench MPs continued to object to Kharge's remarks.

Rajya Sabha Speaker later directed that the contentious remarks be expunged from the proceedings.