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‘Shirtless protest’ at AI Summit: Fifth arrest from Gwalior; police call IYC National President for questioning
Police also recovered T-shirts and posters used in the protest from the vehicle of one of the arrested accused.
The protesters were purportedly wearing T-shirts with the Prime Minister’s picture printed on them, which they had concealed under their jackets and sweaters.
The Delhi Police on Monday summoned Indian Youth Congress (IYC) National President Uday Bhanu Chib for questioning at Tilak Marg Police Station in connection with the ‘shirtless protest’ by youth wing members at the AI Summit that concluded last week in Delhi, officials said.
Police said he had arrived and questioning was underway.
Reacting to the move, senior Congress leader KC Venugopal condemned it and said the government forgets “protests are the heart of democracy, and not a crime”. “What our IYC workers did was to bravely expose how the PM is compromised. This was done in a peaceful manner, without any instigation of violence,” said Venugopal.
He said that the “detention is completely illegal”. “We demand that they all be released immediately and all charges be dropped,” said the Congress general secretary, in a post on X.
Fifth arrest
Police Monday also claimed to have arrested another IYC member from Gwalior in connection with the protest, officials said.
The accused, Jitendra Singh Yadav, who is in his 30s, was arrested on Sunday and remanded to two-day police custody after being produced before the court.
With this arrest, the total number of people arrested in connection with the case has reached five. Police said that around six more people are on their radar and are yet to be arrested.
Police said Yadav has been serving as national coordinator of the IYC since 2024 and is also a member of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI). He pursued a Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) degree from GICTS College, Gwalior, between 2012 and 2014.
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Around 11 people allegedly staged a shirtless protest during the AI Impact Summit on Friday, prompting the Delhi Police to register an FIR at Tilak Marg Police Station under sections related to criminal conspiracy, causing hurt to a public servant, assault on a public servant, disobedience of a public servant’s order, and unlawful assembly.
The protesters were purportedly wearing T-shirts with the Prime Minister’s picture printed on them, which they had concealed under their jackets and sweaters. After entering hall number 5 of Bharat Mandapam some of them removed their upper garments and chanted slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, police said.
Four of them, Krishna Hari, Youth Congress National Secretary; Kundan Yadav, Bihar Youth Congress State Secretary; Ajay Kumar, UP Youth Congress Vice-President; and Narasimha Yadav, Youth Congress National Coordinator, were arrested from the spot. They were sent to five-day police custody by a court on Saturday.
The probe so far
Police said two more IYC members were called for questioning on Sunday; however, they were released in the evening from Tilak Marg Police Station.
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A dedicated team of the New Delhi district is working to nab the remaining accused, conducting raids at various locations in the NCR and other states to apprehend them. Police said some of them have been identified.
Officials said they have recovered T-shirts and posters used in the IYC protest from a car belonging to one of the arrested accused.
A team of Delhi Police also visited Himachal Pradesh on Sunday, inquiring if the men gathered there before coming to the AI Summit for the protest.
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