Who ordered AK-47, pellet guns on students? Priyanka Gandhi targets PM, Amit Shah

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday launched a blistering attack on the Centre in the Lok Sabha, questioning the use of force against students protesting over alleged exam irregularities and demanding to know who ordered the crackdown.Speaking during the debate on the Public Examinations Bill, Priyanka accused the government of treating students like terrorists and directly questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the police action."What was the need to fire tear gas shells, lathi-charge students, use water cannons, pellet guns and AK-47s against them? Were they terrorists?" she asked.As treasury bench members interrupted her speech, Priyanka hit back, saying, "Yes, Congress is asking these questions. Now answer them." She repeatedly demanded to know who authorised the use of force against the protesters. "Who gave the order? Was it the Prime Minister or the Home Minister? Will the Home Minister answer? The entire country is asking these questions, not just the Congress," she said.Priyanka also alleged that young women protesters were humiliated during the police action. "What was the need to tear the clothes of young girls and beat them mercilessly?" she asked. Recalling a visit to an injured student in hospital, Priyanka narrated the anguish of the student's mother, saying she was deeply shaken but determined to fight for justice on her own."The mother asked me why this happened to her daughter. She said many leaders had come to make videos, including those responsible for her daughter's condition, but she would fight alone even if no one stood by her," Priyanka said.The Congress leader accused the government of fearing the country's youth instead of listening to their concerns."Why are you afraid of the youth of this country? Why are you afraid of their voice? Who gave you the right to suppress it?" she asked.Calling Parliament a forum of accountability rather than a seat of power, Priyanka said MPs were representatives of the people and were duty-bound to answer citizens."This House does not belong to those sitting here. It belongs to the people of India. We are servants of the people, not their masters. Democracy and the Constitution are supreme. Destroying them is a sin," she said.Referring to the recent student protests, she said thousands of young people had demonstrated peacefully while following Mahatma Gandhi's principles of truth and non-violence."These are children from villages, towns and cities. Their parents sell jewellery, mortgage land and spend their life's savings on educating them. Today, these students are beginning to believe that dishonesty matters more than hard work. That is the biggest tragedy," she said.- EndsPublished By: Aprameya RaoPublished On: Jul 28, 2026 17:36 IST