Rahul Gandhi Said He is Proud of His Fellow Members of the Youth Congress, Who Raised Their Voices Against the "Compromised PM"

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The AI Impact Summit witnessed unexpected disruption after a Youth Congress chief staged a shirtless protest inside the venue, leading to his arrest by authorities. The incident quickly drew political attention, with Rahul Gandhi issuing a response as security officials reviewed protocols.

According to police sources, the Congress leader, Uday Bhanu Chib, did not cooperate during questioning and tried to mislead the investigators.

Youth Congress Leader Arrested 

Uday Bhanu Chib, the national president of the Indian Youth Congress, has been arrested after several rounds of questioning in connection with the shirtless protest at Bharat Mandapan during the AI Impact Summit. Chib was arrested after about 15 hours of questioning at the Tilak Marg police station in connection with the shirtless protest at the AI meet. 

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The police said they have sufficient evidence against him. Chib was produced in court and remanded in custody for four days. This is the eighth arrest in the case.

Reactions from the BJP over the Shirtless Protest

The BJP had earlier called the shirtless protest "characterless, brainless, and emotionless". Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla had accused the Congress of undermining national progress. "Congress has once again proven that for them, AI isn't Ambitious India, Artificial Intelligence, Aspirational India. For them, AI is anti-India. This isn't the INC, this is the ANC, the anti-National Congress.

"The AI Summit is being praised worldwide. From President Macron to the United Nations Secretary General, to top tech company honchos, from Sam Altman to Sundar Pichai, everyone is praising it. Even Shashi Tharoor said the AI Summit was excellent. But at Rahul Gandhi's behest, the Congress party is protesting; it is a characterless, brainless, emotionless protest. This isn't a protest against the BJP, it's not a protest against the PM, it's a protest against India's achievements," he said.

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Response from Congress


Youth Congress has defended the protest, saying it was peaceful and aimed at drawing attention to a "compromised" prime minister. "Our message was clear, our slogan was clear, that the prime minister is compromised. In the past few days, in various places in the country, we organised protests, but there was a lathi-charge on our workers," said Youth Congress's national general secretary Sheh Narayan Ojha.

In a post in Hindi on X, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said peaceful protest is the Congress's historical heritage. "It is in our blood and a democratic right of every Indian," the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha said.

"The arrest of Youth Congress President Uday Bhanu Chib and other IYC members for exposing this truth to the nation is reflective of dictatorial tendencies and cowardice," Mr. Gandhi said.

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"The Congress Party and I stand firmly with our fellow members. Showing the mirror of truth to power is not a crime; it is patriotism. Don't be afraid — the truth and the Constitution are with us," Mr. Gandhi said, using the hashtag 'I Stand With Youth Congress'.

Closing Note


Judicial Magistrate Ravi allowed four days of custody to the police to question Chib over his role in the AI Summit protest, during which IYC members took their shirts off to reveal anti-Modi and anti-Centre slogans on t-shirts beneath.

The accused opposed the prosecution’s remand plea, denying no “riot-like situation” was created and calling the allegations an attempt to “insert riots everywhere.” They said those present were unarmed and beaten, questioning the need to recover t-shirts through custody.

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The counsel for the IYC president submitted that his client was not present at the spot and had already been interrogated, calling the remand plea “frivolous and irrelevant” as he asked the prosecution to show any prima facie conspiracy.

Public Prosecutor Atul Kumar Srivastava countered that the accused, though not physically present, was “communicating and monitoring each and everything” and was the “mastermind.” He said the knowledge that the act could lead to a riot-like situation was sufficient and that as IYC president, he bore “additional responsibility.”