Congress attempts to justify disruption of AI Impact Summit as ‘peaceful protest’ and ‘constitutional right’: Read why arrest of IYC goons for embarassing India during global event is justified

Desperation to secure political clout and pose as ‘revolutionaries-fighting-the-dictator’ so high that the Congress party decided to bring embarrassment to the nation. On the 20th February 2026, chaos erupted at the prestigious India AI Impact Summit held at Bharat Mandapam in Delhi when Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers staged a shirtless protest, chanting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. While the detractors of the Modi government drew joy from embarrassing host India at the global event, the common people were outraged. In no time, Delhi Police swung into action and arrested several Youth Congress members who partook in the ignominious ‘protest’. #WATCH | Delhi: Indian Youth Congress workers staged a topless protest and chanted anti-Modi slogans at Bharat Mandapam(Source: Indian Youth Congress) pic.twitter.com/WCZgCMwkFZ— ANI (@ANI) February 20, 2026 So far, five people have been identified and arrested. These include IYC National Secretary Krishna Hari, Bihar State Secretary Kundan Yadav, UP State Vice President Ajay Kumar, National Coordinator Narasimha Yadav,  and Jitendra Yadav from Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior. Calling the action against Youth Congress workers ‘draconian’, Indian Youth Congress National President, Uday Bhanu said on 22nd February, “When even the smallest, peaceful act of democratic dissent invites a draconian crackdown, it is not “foolish”. It is a warning bell. This is what a stifling atmosphere looks like. When asking questions is punished, silence is enforced. And that should worry anyone who still believes in democracy.” When even the smallest, peaceful act of democratic dissent invites a draconian crackdown, it isn’t “foolish.”It’s a warning bell.This is what a stifling atmosphere looks like. When asking questions is punished, silence is enforced. And that should worry anyone who still…— Uday Bhanu Chib (@UdayBhanuIYC) February 22, 2026 IYC National President Uday Bhanu Chib is reported to have been detained by Delhi Police on 23rd February for questioning in connection with the present case. Lamenting IYC leader Udhay Bhanu’s detention, the Indian Youth Congress Kerala said that somehow ‘dictator’ Modi is getting those who staged ‘peaceful protest’ arrested. The IYC Kerala wrote on X on 23rd February, “History is witness: Dictators too are remembered, and so are those who refused to bow before fear. The Delhi Police’s illegal detention of IYC President @UdayBhanuIYC shows that a peaceful protest has robbed the Prime Minister and the BJP of their sleep. This fight is no longer just ours; it belongs to the people, and now everyone must come together to decide what kind of democracy they want.” इतिहास गवाह है:तानाशाह भी याद रखे जाते हैं,और वो भी जिन्होंने डर के सामने झुकने से इंकार किया।दिल्ली पुलिस द्वारा IYC अध्यक्ष @UdayBhanuIYC को गैरकानूनी रूप से हिरासत में लेना बताता है कि एक शांतिपूर्ण प्रदर्शन ने प्रधानमंत्री और भाजपा की नींद उड़ा दी है।ये लड़ाई अब सिर्फ… pic.twitter.com/Dui0BvuJyT— Indian Youth Congress Kerala (@IYCKerala) February 23, 2026 Congress spokesperson Rakesh Sinha invoked the constitution to justify the disgraceful shirtless protest by Youth Congress workers, and said, “I believe that what the Youth Congress members did was absolutely to save the country’s honour, and in a democracy, we have the right to protest. Where should we go to protest in a democracy? Should we go to their homes and protest? So, we have protested, and the Constitution gives us this right.” Ranchi, Jharkhand: Congress spokesperson Rakesh Sinha says, "I believe that what the Youth Congress members did was absolutely to save the country's honor, and in a democracy, we have the right to protest. Where should we go to protest in a democracy? Should we go to their homes… pic.twitter.com/1xnsIv2CC9— IANS (@ians_india) February 23, 2026 Meanwhile, the official X handle of the Congress party put out a post condemning the arrest of IYC National President Uday Bhanu. The Congress party emphasised the ‘peaceful’ and ‘non-violent’ nature of the protests that its workers staged at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi, saying that it was their democratic right. “We strongly condemn the detention of @IYC President @UdayBhanuIYC ji and several other members by the Delhi Police in connection with their protest at the AI Summit. Protest is a fundamental democratic right, not a crime. The IYC members protested peacefully, without any provocation or violence. Their only “offence” was exposing how the Prime Minister stands compromised, something the Modi government clearly could not tolerate.  This detention is nothing but a blatant misuse of power and an attempt to silence dissent. This detention is completely illegal. We demand the immediate release of all those detained and the withdrawal of all charges. Gurmehar Kaur also jumped on the bandwagon and invoked the ‘constitutional right’ argument to justify the opprobrious act of the Youth Congress workers. Kaur wrote on X, “Peaceful protest is a constitutional right – not a crime! Release IYC President and peaceful protesters NOW!” It must be recalled that  Youth Congress leaders had removed their shirts with slogans printed on them and waved them while chanting slogans like “PM is compromised”. They were protesting against the recently announced India-US tariff agreement, alleging it compromises national interests and lacks transparency. The protest took place inside the summit venue, disrupting proceedings for a few minutes as attendees, including top CEOs and international delegates, looked on in surprise. Visuals from the scene showed protesters holding up T-shirts emblazoned with images and messages criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, they were confronted by visitors at the venue, who slammed them for disrupting the global event with politics. This led to a physical confrontation between the disruptors and visitors, with several Youth Congress leaders having to face angry blows from the members of the public. While the Youth Congress defended its actions as a democratic right to protest, the BJP described the episode as a “national shame,” accusing the Congress of politicising a global technology event. Is freedom of expression and the right to protest absolute? Congress’s demonstration of dissent came at the cost of India’s reputation, and their arrest is thus justified While the Congress party has a track record of making a mockery of democracy, democratic institutions, flout the constitutional principles, the party hypocritically claims to be a defender of democracy and the constitution. From signing MoUs with China’s CCP, seeking foreign intervention in India’s internal political affairs, echoing Pakistan’s fake ‘Rafale shot down’ narrative, to staging a shirtless protest at the India AI Impact Summit at Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam, Congress has on many occasions demonstrated that it’s not Prime Minister Modi but Congress party’s ethics that are compromised. The recurrent usage of terms like ‘peaceful protests’, ‘constitutional right’, ‘freedom of expression’ and whatnot does not justify the political degeneracy displayed by IYC workers at the AI Summit. A protest being peaceful alone does not vindicate it, particularly not at an event where global leaders have gathered, and a national reputation is at stake. Thus, the arrest and detention of Youth Congress workers is more than justified. In fact, IYC workers being able to sneak in placards with slogans against PM Modi, the India-US trade agreement, and going shirtless to give an overdramatic spin to their theatrics should be seen as a security failure. Who knows, the ‘protestors’ would have assaulted foreign visitors or vandalised the venue to draw international media attention? The IYC workers did not conduct a routine demonstration or seek permission from the authorities; they outrightly barged into a high-security international venue during a prestigious event where India, being the host nation, was showcasing its AI ambitions, in the presence of foreign dignitaries, global tech giants, heads of state, and other major stakeholders. Under Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution, Indian citizens have the right to protest; however, this right is not absolute. It is rightly subject to reasonable restrictions under Article 19(2) and 19(3) for public order, decency, morality, and sovereignty and integrity of India. In fact, a Delhi Court made an explicit observation while remanding four IYC workers to five days’ police custody that the act of the accused “transcended the ambit of legitimate dissent and hurt the country’s diplomatic image before foreign stakeholders.” No matter how loud the Congress leaders shout and lionise their shirtless hooligans, the truth will not change that their protest was not a ‘peaceful’ or ‘democratic’ Satyagrah, but a deliberate disruption at a summit meant to posit India as a global AI powerhouse, bring pride and investments. While picking Youth Congress workers to hold the shirtless protest may have been a calculated choice to spin a narrative before the international media that India’s Gen-Z, broadly youth, is absolutely discontent and frustrated with the Modi government’s policies, this ‘youth activism’ gimmick did not resonate with the Indian youth, largely. Ever since the Gen-Z protests toppled the corrupt Oli government in Nepal, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has explicitly been trying to win over the Indian Gen-Z. However, the Indian youth support the right to protest and freedom of expression more than any other generation, arguably, yet they do not trade these rights and freedoms for national reputation and honour. The deal is simple; opposing Modi is fine, imperilling India’s image in the process is intolerable, and criminal and shall have consequences. Apparently, the Congress party saw the AI Impact Summit, where global leaders flocked in, and the international media focus was on, as an opportunity to trade headlines from India’s AI ambitions to the so-called “sell-out” India-US deal that is not even formally signed yet. The IYC workers breached security and decorum at the AI Impact Summit, perhaps hoping that foreign media would amplify the ‘crackdown on dissent under fascist Modi’ sort of propaganda. Moreover, the way hooliganism in Delhi snowballed into violence and stone pelting across other cities, including Chandigarh and Indore, during IYC’s coordinated protest,s shows that the entire fiasco was pre-planned to maximise national embarrassment. Given the Youth Congress’s history of violence and hooliganism, be it at the AI Impact Summit, attacks on BJP and BRS workers, or attacking Sikhs during the 1984 anti-Sikh pogrom, if not for the swift action by the Delhi Police, a larger conspiracy to destabilise the nation may have unfolded. This is not mere suspicion, alarmism, or the villainization of the Youth Congress; in fact, the Delhi Police informed the court on 21st February that the Indian Youth Congress sought to stir up a protest similar to that in Nepal. The police stated that the IYC workers wanted to defame India internationally during the event. While seeking a five-day remand of the accused IYC workers, the Delhi Police told the court that there is a deep conspiracy at play, three police officers were injured during the ruckus caused by the accused, and that the organised fashion in which the entire episode unfolded, it is imperative to conduct a proper investigation. “Three policemen were injured, and their (accused) mobile phones need to be recovered to verify whether they received funding. Four people from four different locations came together and printed T-shirts. Five days’ custody is necessary to investigate the matter,” the police said. If the Congress party does not want its workers to be arrested, it should refrain from deploying them to turn prestige events in protest battlegrounds. While Congress leaders are justifying the ‘shirtless protest’, saying that they had to resort to such action because they are deprived of forums to register protests, including the Parliament, it is the same Congress-led opposition that does not let the House function when they actually get their rightful opportunity to debate and criticise the government. Instead of crying hoarse over the arrest and detention of IYC workers, the Congress leadership should understand that in the garb of ‘dissent’, ‘shirtless stunts cannot topple governments, rather, they only expose the desperation to drag India down. If Congress workers or anyone dares to gatecrash India’s global moment, the law will gatecrash them.