J.P. Nadda Slams Rahul Gandhi Over Police Station Protest, Calls It ‘Camera-Centric Drama’

August 21, 2026

New Delhi: Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Friday criticised Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over his protest outside Parliament Street Police Station, calling it “camera-centric drama” and accusing him of indulging in attention-seeking politics.

Nadda said the Supreme Court has already taken cognisance of the July 20 incident in the national capital and constituted a five-member High-Powered Expert Committee (HPEC) headed by a retired judge to conduct a fact-finding inquiry.

#WATCH | Delhi: Union Minister JP Nadda says, “The entire nation is once again witnessing the kind of cheap, attention-seeking politics that Rahul Gandhi displayed today outside the Sansad Marg police station. Rahul Gandhi’s sit-in protest today is neither for the students nor… pic.twitter.com/6yOWyKcHyg

— ANI (@ANI) August 21, 2026

Nadda questions Rahul Gandhi’s protest

Nadda alleged that Gandhi’s sit-in outside the police station was neither for students nor for justice but was aimed at gaining media attention.

He questioned the purpose of the protest when the Supreme Court was already examining the July 20 incident and asked whether the Leader of the Opposition lacked faith in the judiciary.

Nadda also alleged that the Congress was using the protest to divert attention from the criticism it was facing over the ‘Vande Mataram’ controversy.

Sahil Lochav seeks FIR over pellet gun incident

The protest was linked to the alleged use of pellet guns during demonstrations on July 20. Pellet gun injury victim Sahil Lochav said at Parliament Street Police Station that an FIR had not been registered on his complaint.

Lochav said pellet guns were fired at him on July 20 and that he was initially admitted to Lady Hardinge Hospital before being referred to AIIMS, where he underwent surgery. He said his eyesight had not fully recovered.

He also said he submitted a seven-page complaint through his lawyer on August 14 but the FIR had not been registered.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the party’s demand was straightforward — registration of an FIR and issuance of the FIR number. He said Rahul Gandhi was supporting Lochav’s demand and that the party would remain at the police station until an FIR was registered.

Supreme Court forms five-member inquiry panel

The Supreme Court on Thursday constituted a five-member HPEC to conduct a fact-finding exercise into allegations of police excesses and violence by protesters during the recent CJP-led demonstrations.

The panel is headed by retired Supreme Court Justice R Subhash Reddy and includes former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Ravi Shankar Jha, former Delhi High Court Justice Shalinder Kaur, former CBI Director Rishi Kumar Shukla and former Meghalaya DGP L.R. Bishnoi.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana said the committee would examine grievances raised by both protesters and police authorities.

The panel has been directed to give priority to allegations of excessive use of force by police, violence by protesters and allegations of harassment and molestation of women protesters.

Panel to examine compensation and video evidence

The Supreme Court also permitted the committee to examine whether interim compensation should be granted to people injured during the protests, including police personnel and protesters.

The court said the inquiry would not be limited to a one-time exercise and directed the HPEC to periodically submit interim findings for further assessment.

CCTV recordings of the protests and body-camera footage from police and security personnel, which had earlier been ordered to be preserved, will also be handed over to the committee for examination.

The Supreme Court clarified that the formation of the HPEC would not prevent police or other security authorities from initiating departmental or disciplinary action against officials found to have violated applicable rules.