The Congress-led opposition is expected to continue targeting the government in Parliament over the alleged police crackdown on protesting students, demanding action against those responsible and an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources said on Sunday.
The opposition's floor strategy, including its position on the bill seeking to amend the two-year-old anti-paper leak law, will be decided at a meeting of the INDIA bloc in Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge's chamber in Parliament on Monday morning, the sources said.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking accountability for the "barbaric assault" on peacefully protesting students and asking whether he approved the use of "lethal force", including pellet guns.
In his letter, Gandhi said peaceful protest is crucial to any democracy and that it is the government's responsibility to protect protesters and resolve their grievances through dialogue.
"Such brutal violence destroys every norm, and has outraged the country. Youth and students, the future of our country, are demanding answers and accountability. Their voice will be heard," the former Congress chief said.
Sharing the letter, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said Gandhi had posed two questions to Shah: "As the Home Minister, did you authorise the use of lethal force, including pellet guns, against students? If not, who granted this authorisation? Are the individuals seen raining blows on students while dressed in plain clothes, police personnel or volunteers? Who authorised their deployment?"
"The home minister must answer these crucial questions in Parliament tomorrow. The prime minister should apologise to the students," Ramesh said in his post in Hindi.
The Congress has described Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation as a victory for students, but said the prime minister must also apologise to them.
Kharge has said it was now Modi's turn to apologise and take strict action against all those who used lathis, batons and pellet guns against the agitating students.
Following Pradhan's resignation, Gandhi also urged the prime minister to apologise to the students out of respect for the future of the country and for the "atrocities" committed against them during the agitation.
Gandhi said Pradhan's resignation was a significant step towards rebuilding the education system, describing it as a "symbolic step because he was a symbol, but it is still a big step".
"This is not the end. We still await the prime minister's apology to our students," Ramesh said, reiterating the demand for accountability for those responsible for the alleged excesses.
A heated debate on the paper leak issue is expected if the government and the opposition break the ongoing deadlock in both Houses of Parliament.
The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, has been circulated to Lok Sabha members ahead of its introduction.
The bill proposes a minimum jail term of five years and a maximum of 10 years, along with a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh, for those involved in paper leaks or the use of unfair means in examinations.
For organised crime, it proposes a minimum sentence of seven years and a fine of up to Rs 10 crore.
The existing law provides for imprisonment of between three and five years to curb cheating, while those involved in organised cheating offences face prison terms of between 5-10 years and a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore.
The bill has been listed for introduction, consideration and passage in the Lok Sabha on Monday. Bills are not usually listed for introduction and passage on the same day.
The government announced the proposed legislation after student protests led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) over the NEET paper leak gathered momentum in recent days.
Opposition protests over the NEET issue led to a washout of proceedings during the first week of the Parliament session.
The opposition's position on the proposed legislation remains unclear.
Asked whether the Congress would support the bill, Gandhi said on Saturday that the party would not decide unilaterally and that its stand would be based on a consensus among opposition parties.
"The Congress party has a central principle. We will decide this during a meeting of opposition parties and a decision will be based on opposition consensus. In Parliament, that is our discipline, and that is our way of functioning," he said.
The 2024 law was enacted after the government faced widespread controversy over paper leaks.
Before the legislation was introduced, there was no specific substantive law dealing with unfair means or offences committed by individuals or organisations involved in conducting public examinations held by the central government and its agencies.
In the wake of the student protests, Modi had promised legislation to deal with cases such as the NEET-UG paper leak. He also said those accused in such cases would be tried in fast-track courts.
The CJP on Saturday called off its 36-day agitation after the education minister resigned and the government accepted its other demands.
(With inputs from PTI)
