People stage a protest demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on July 21, 2026.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Demonstrators assembled at Shivaji Park in Dadar on Tuesday (July 21, 2026) and marched toward Shiv Sena Bhavan. The gathering remained non-violent, according to participants and police officials. The protest drew a large number of young individuals in response to social media appealsAtman Pawar, an advertising professional, said he attended because he was disturbed by the previous day’s events.“The crowd is good,” Pawar told reporters. “This has been completely peaceful. There has been no violence from either side. Both the system and the people have come together to let this protest remain peaceful. I believe this is also a shining beacon of how protests should be conducted. From this protest, I think there should be more accountability. I am sure this will not change in one day, but if more people keep coming on streets, we will make the people in power change the way they work and we will achieve more accountability, which is the most fundamental principle that a democracy should uphold.”Ifrah, a veterinary student from Delhi studying in Mumbai, also participated in Tuesday’s protest. She said that the issue was personal to her.“I have also been a NEET aspirant. I have also given the paper. I have given it twice and I know that it really wrecks your mind, your physical health and what not,” Ifrah said. “The people who actually lost their lives because of the uncertainty – it was devastating.”She added that the legal framework had made her and others hesitant to inform their parents about their attendance. “Even to come to today’s protest, we were getting so much news about people getting detained. The fact that we can’t even tell our parents that we are here because they are afraid that the legal framework of this country would only be keeping us inside for a thought that is so important to everyone.”Ifrah said her motivation also came from seeing the treatment of her friends in Delhi. “I do belong to Delhi. A lot of my friends whom I have known for like 10-12 years were there. Seeing their faces, seeing their bruises, it felt more important to be here.”She cited activist Sonam Wangchuk as an inspiration. “He is an amazing scientist. He has everything to do with the scientific technology of this country. To see him go through so much, even his voice is not heard. Maybe trying out that, maybe for a 100 people they are here, for 1000 people they are here or maybe even more, I think it’s worth a shot that everyone should be taking.”Describing the crowd, Ifrah said, “Today didn’t feel like there are so many people from so many different places. It actually felt like we all belong to this one community, this one nation, to say the very least. The police today were much milder than they were during the previous protests.”She addressed the fear felt by potential protesters: “Sitting alone in a cab or alone in a train while you are coming, you will feel terrified. You will feel like they (the police) are going to take you, they are not going to leave you. People are sending you legal help notices and whatnot. But once you come here and you see people who are genuinely just courageous enough to stand in front of the police, your confidence increases a lot.”She appealed to other youth: “People who are still afraid should definitely just step outside and into the zone where the protest is happening. Because even then your fear really goes away. It won’t go away sitting at home.”On Monday (July 20, 2026), Mumbai police detained over 300 individuals near Chaityabhoomi in Dadar who had gathered to oppose the removal of Sonam Wangchuk from a Delhi hunger strike and demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over examination paper leaks.Police have registered eight FIRs across Mumbai stations naming over 900 accused, with the highest count exceeding 600 at Shivaji Park Police Station, while Delhi authorities have lodged multiple FIRs following the CJP “Sansad Chalo” protest, with five cases reported so far. Published - July 22, 2026 03:12 pm IST
