Jantar Mantar protest: Officials claim political infiltration led to continued stone-pelting

New Delhi: A Hindustan Times report published on Sunday said that people with "vested political interests" infiltrated the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, escalating violence during an agitation over alleged competitive examination paper leaks that culminated in the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Citing security officials, the report said political activists infiltrated genuine student gatherings and were responsible for sustained stone-pelting that continued for at least six days until the protest concluded on July 25. The alleged violence coincided with attempts to breach barricades in high-security areas around Parliament.

The CJP-led protests, which began over alleged widespread paper leaks in competitive examinations, drew thousands of student activists. Innovator-activist Sonam Wangchuk also joined the movement during his 26-day hunger strike, lending further momentum to the campaign.

The agitation intensified through a series of demonstrations, police stand-offs and a major march towards Parliament on July 20. The protests eventually led to Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation after the government accepted the movement's key demand. The CJP formally called off the agitation on July 25.

Stone-pelting reported across Parliament precinct

According to the Hindustan Times report, security officials said the stone-pelting was not confined to a single location but spread across multiple flashpoints within a two-kilometre radius of Parliament.

Among the locations identified were the Rafi Marg barricade near Rail Bhawan, Gol Dak Khana, Jantar Mantar, the Tolstoy-Janpath crossing, the Tolstoy-Sansad Marg corridor, the Regal Building, the Outer Circle near the LIC Building in Connaught Place, Sansad Marg near the SBI Building and Raisina Road near the Press Club of India.

Officials told that police exercised restraint in an effort to defuse tensions. They maintained that force was used only on July 20 after repeated provocations, including days of alleged stone-pelting as well as what they described as "unprovoked heckling" of police personnel and members of the media.