Cong leader Priyanka hails youth protests as ‘victory for democracy’, says students forced government to bend
Wayanad: Congress general secretary and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday described the ongoing student-led protests against examination paper leaks and systemic failures as a historic moment in which the youth of India had begun “claiming their country back.”
Addressing the media in Wayanad, Kerala, Priyanka Gandhi said July 25, 2026, marked the day when ordinary citizens started reclaiming the Constitution from those who had sought to undermine it and suppress public voices.
“I am very happy for many reasons, but the main reason is that I believe today… is the day that the people of our country have started claiming their country back,” she said. She called the protests a clear victory for India’s youth, who, she noted, had faced pellet guns, tear gas and lathi charges yet refused to yield.
“They have done it exactly in the way that Mahatma Gandhi taught us. We have done it non-violently… The government had to bend to their will,” Priyanka Gandhi said. She described the episode as a lasting lesson for every ruler: in a democracy, the will of the people remains paramount and no individual, leader or force can override it.
The Congress leader emphasised that students had protested across the country, not merely in Delhi, and had done so without regard for political parties or attempts to politicise their demand. “They have stood for what they believed was right… and this is their victory,” she said, offering them her compliments.
Priyanka Gandhi credited her brother and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, for consistently raising the issue of paper leaks and examination irregularities for more than two or three years. She said his sustained focus had helped mobilise the NSUI and Youth Congress to support students and build a nationwide movement for education reform.
Reflecting on the past decade, she said she had often wondered when the country’s young people would rise against what she described as the ideological capture of educational institutions, the appointment of vice-chancellors on political lines, and the use of force against those who protested. “Today I am a very happy person because the youth of our country has spoken, and nobody can even dare to silence their voice,” she added, noting that she had been moved by the news.
The Congress party, she said, had backed the students “in the strongest way possible.” Priyanka Gandhi portrayed the present moment as only the beginning of a larger struggle for the rights of students and the reform of India’s education system.
