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India’s political confrontation over protest, dissent and democratic rights has further intensified this week after Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused the Narendra Modi government of criminalising peaceful protest. This drew sharp rebuttals from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and has now deepened an already volatile national debate which is unfolding alongside recent arrests linked to demonstrations at the India AI Impact Summit. File Photo of Rahul Gandhi; Via: Jairam Ramesh In a post on X written in Hindi , Rahul Gandhi said that under what he described as a “compromised PM,” peaceful dissent had been turned into the “biggest crime,” alleging that India was being pushed toward a system where disagreement is labelled “anti-national” and questioning authority treated as conspiracy.  “Peaceful protest is not a crime — it is the soul of democracy,” Rahul Gandhi wrote, and argued that democracy becomes stronger when governments “listen to criticism, respond a...

A sharp inter-state jurisdictional confrontation is currently underplay between Delhi Police and Himachal Pradesh Police. This comes after Shimla Police registered an FIR against nearly 15 Delhi Police personnel for what they claimed was alleged abduction in connection with the arrest of three Youth Congress activists who are said to be linked to the February 20 shirtless protest at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi . Himanchal Police VS Delhi Police Standoff in Shimla; Pic Via: Bharat Briefs on X According to a statement by Shimla Police, authorities had received information that 15–20 unidentified individuals in plain clothes arrived at a resort in Mandli village in Chirgaon, which falls in Rohru subdivision of Shimla district. According to the information received, they forcibly took away three guests staying there.  The individuals allegedly seized a Mahindra Thar vehicle belonging to the guests and also removed the DVR of CCTV cameras installed at Chanshal Resort w...

A day after a brief shirtless protest disrupted the India AI Impact Summit 2026 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, the Indian National Congress has publicly backed the demonstrators and escalated a political confrontation over the limits of protest at high-profile international events and the substance of India’s trade policy. Protest Screengrab; Via: Ranoj Pegu On February 20, a group of 10 to 15 young men linked to the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), the youth wing of the Congress party, entered Hall No. 5 of the summit venue using valid entry passes or QR codes, according to police statements.  Inside the exhibition hall, they removed white T-shirts printed with red graphics featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s face and the words “PM IS COMPROMISED,” held them aloft like placards and chanted slogans targeting the Prime Minister and his government.  Compromised प्रधानमंत्री के खिलाफ युवाओं का 'हल्ला बोल' ✊ pic.twitter.com/FVmGjIuPYn — Congress (@INCIndia) Febr...

A group of young men said to be linked to the Indian Youth Congress, a major wing of the Indian National Congress which is India's primary Opposition Party, staged a brief shirtless protest inside New Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam on February 20, 2026. They disrupted proceedings at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, a high-profile event that is being attended by global technology leaders and government officials.  Shirtless Protest Snap; Via: TheIndeWire on X Police authorities have been reported saying that around 10 to 15 protesters entered Hall No. 5, which is an exhibition and conference space within the venue, using valid entry passes or QR codes.  They then began removing their shirts and chanting slogans targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government. जब विदेश नीति में झुकाव, कॉरपोरेट दबाव और चुप्पी हावी हो… तो साफ है, PM मोदी COMPROMISED हैं!! 🔥 इसी सच्चाई को बेनकाब करने भारतीय युवा कांग्रेस के जाबांज कार्यकर्ता AI Summit पहुँचे और “Compromised PM” के खिलाफ विरोध प...

The Prayagraj Mela Authority has issued a formal notice to Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, questioning his use of the title “Shankaracharya” of Jyotirmath, one of Hinduism’s four cardinal seats of Advaita Vedanta.  Citing a 2022 interim Supreme Court stay on his coronation, the administration has demanded a response within 24 hours, escalating a standoff that began during the Mauni Amavasya bathing ritual at the Magh Mela in Uttar Pradesh. Image Source: Dr. Kiran J Patel on X The notice references a civil appeal pending before the Supreme Court in the matter of “Jagat Guru Shankaracharya Jyotishpeeth P.S.S.N. Saraswati vs Swami Vasudevanand Saraswati,” a longstanding dispute over the rightful successor to the Jyotish Peeth.  In October 2022, the Court explicitly stayed the pattabhishek (coronation) of Avimukteshwaranand or any other individual to the Shankaracharya post pending final adjudication. Despite this, the seer has publicly presented himself as the Jyotirmath Shan...

Iran is once again at the brink. Six days into the largest protests the country has witnessed since 2022, the Islamic Republic finds itself in a precarious domestic and geopolitical bind—grappling with mass unrest triggered by the freefall of its national currency and inflamed by a public still raw from last summer’s U.S. airstrikes on nuclear sites.  The volatility is now deepening into a full-blown crisis, marked by the return of U.S. President Donald Trump to a confrontational posture and a defiant volley of warnings from Tehran’s security establishment. File Photo: Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani; Via: TheCradleMedia The current wave of protests erupted after the Iranian rial plunged to an all-time low of 1.4 million to the U.S. dollar, prompting the resignation of Central Bank governor Mohammad Reza Farzin. Merchants in Tehran’s historic Saadi Street and Grand Bazaar, long seen as economic and political bellwethers, shuttered shops in sy...