Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday refused to apologise for his remarks in the Lok Sabha accusing Union Home Minister Amit Shah of authorising the use of force against student protesters. He also reiterated his demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi remove Shah from the Union Cabinet.
Earlier in the day, Gandhi's comments sparked a heated exchange in the Lok Sabha during the debate on the anti-paper leak Bill. NDA MPs demanded that he apologise and provide evidence for his allegations, while Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla reminded him that any accusation made in the House must be supported by proof.
Addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters in New Delhi, Gandhi said, "Sack Amit Shah, that's my advice to PM Modi."
The Congress leader claimed he was told he could continue his speech if he apologised but refused to do so, saying he would "never ever apologise" to the BJP or the RSS.
"Rajnath Singh and Kiren Rijiju were allowed to speak multiple times. I was assured that if I apologised, I would be allowed to continue. I will never ever apologise to the BJP or the RSS," he said.
Gandhi maintained that, as Leader of the Opposition, he had every right to raise matters of national importance. He argued that the police action against students protesting the alleged NEET paper leak was the country's most urgent issue.
"For me, the biggest issue today is that students—young people who question and think independently—were subjected to brutality," he said.
Repeating his allegations, Gandhi claimed that security personnel used pellet guns against protesters and said one student was likely to lose vision in one eye.
"I have seen the AIIMS medical certificate which shows that one boy was hit by pellet guns and is most likely to lose his eye," he alleged.
He also accused the police of using "shock batons" and "lathis with nails" during the crackdown, claiming women and minors were among those assaulted.
"Where did the police get this idea from? Lathis with nails being used against women and minors," he said, adding that he personally witnessed a police officer slap a protester.
Gandhi further alleged that he saw Amit Shah personally directing police officers during the protests.
"When we were at Parliament House, I saw Amit Shah calling police officers. I also saw Jitendra Singh receiving repeated calls from him. It was clear that he knew what was happening," Gandhi claimed.
His allegations prompted protests from Treasury bench members, with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju demanding evidence to support the claims.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh dismissed Gandhi's accusations as "factually incorrect", stating that no bullets were fired and no orders to open fire were issued during the protest.
The controversy unfolded shortly before the Lok Sabha passed the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 by voice vote.
The amended law introduces tougher penalties for paper leak offences, including imprisonment of up to 10 years and fines of up to Rs 50 lakh.
