Students detained ahead of Amit Shah’s Alwar visit over planned protest demanding his resignation over CJP crackdown

Rajasthan Police detained a group of college students in Alwar on Sunday ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s public programme in the city, after they allegedly planned to stage a protest and show him black flags.

Shah, accompanied by Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, is scheduled to address a public meeting at Vijay Nagar Ground in Alwar. He is also expected to launch development projects worth ₹6,279 crore across Rajasthan, including projects valued at ₹783 crore in Alwar district.

According to police sources, the students were detained before a planned protest at RR College, PTI reported.

The students were reportedly planning to raise several issues, including the alleged lathi-charge on student protesters at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar during a Cockroach Janta Party demonstration in July. Their demands also included better roads, a probe into the alleged Matsya fisheries scam and the restoration of student union elections in Rajasthan.

The Alwar detentions come amid allegations by Opposition parties and student groups that authorities have increasingly resorted to preventive detention ahead of Shah’s public engagements. The Opposition has also been demanding Shah’s resignation over police action against student protesters in Delhi.

Similar detentions in Pune

A similar incident was reported in Pune on August 1, when several Maharashtra Youth Congress and Pune City Congress office-bearers were detained ahead of visits by Shah and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

The Youth Congress alleged that some of its leaders were detained for nearly 16 hours and that their mobile phones were seized.

On the same day, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Vasant More was also detained after announcing plans to protest during Shah’s visit. Police described the action as preventive and said it was intended to prevent disruption to Shah’s programme and an award ceremony involving Doval.

Student protests

The July 20 police action cited by the Alwar students relates to a student-led protest at Jantar Mantar over the NEET-UG paper leak issue. Activists associated with groups including the All India Students Association and the Cockroach Janta Party had participated in the demonstrations.

The protests eventually contributed to political pressure on the Centre and the resignation of senior BJP leader Dharmendra Pradhan as Union education minister.

Student groups have since alleged that authorities continued to detain activists despite assurances that punitive action would not follow after the protests ended.