Highly condemnable, shameful: Priyanka slams arrest of IYC leaders

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday (February 25, 2026) said the action taken against Youth Congress members for raising the voice of the people is “highly condemnable” and “shameful”.

She asserted that it is in the interest of 1.4 billion Indians to raise voice against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government which has “compromised” India’s interests by bowing to global pressure.

Her remarks came a day after Delhi Police arrested Indian Youth Congress president Uday Bhanu Chib as the “main conspirator” and “mastermind” of the shirtless protest at the AI Summit last week, and added charges of rioting against him and six other IYC workers held earlier.

In a post in Hindi on X, Priyanka Gandhi said, “Peaceful and non-violent resistance for truth is our proud heritage, inherited from Mahatma Gandhi and millions of our Indian ancestors.” “It is in the interest of 1.4 billion Indians to raise their voice against the Prime Minister and the government, who have compromised India’s interests by bowing to global pressure,” she said.

“The action taken against Youth Congress members for raising the voice of the people is highly condemnable and shameful. The Congress Party stands firmly with the fearless soldiers of the Youth Congress,” she said.

On Friday (February 20, 2026), a group of IYC workers staged a dramatic protest inside Hall No. 5 of the summit venue by removing their shirts to reveal T-shirts printed with slogans against the government and the India-U.S. interim trade deal, before being whisked away by security personnel.

The Congress has strongly condemned the arrest of Chib and other IYC workers, with Rahul Gandhi alleging that the action was reflective of “dictatorial tendencies and cowardice”.