Journalism of Courage
JP Nadda’s ‘Emergency’ snap in row over attempted arrest of CPM’s Aishe Ghosh
CPM MP John Brittas said the police personnel told her they wanted to arrest Ghosh in a 2021 case related to a protest on JNU campus
CPM's John Brittas flagged the Delhi Police visit to CPM office; BJP's JP Nadda responded
A Delhi Police team’s visit to the CPM headquarters in the city to arrest youth leader Aishe Ghosh – allegedly for her involvement in the Jantar Mantar protests – sparked a face-off in the Rajya Sabha Wednesday.
While the CPM’s John Brittas and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge targeted the ruling BJP for entering a national party’s office, Union Health Minister JP Nadda hit back, reminding them he was once arrested from inside a classroom, during the Emergency imposed by the then-Congress government in 1975.
Raising the issue in the Upper House, Brittas said, “We have a parliamentary democracy based on a multi-party system. Yesterday, an unfortunate incident happened. A Delhi Police team barged into the headquarters of CPM, which is a national political party… It was to arrest Aishe Ghosh, former JNU students’ union president. Her only mistake was: she participated in the Jantar Mantar agitation.”
Brittas said the police personnel told her they wanted to arrest Ghosh in a 2021 case related to a protest. “The shocking thing is they came without uniform… they want to scare…,” he said, demanding a response from Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress President and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, demanded strict action against those responsible. “I request you, people who have gone there unauthorised, they should be punished. Why have they gone? Who are they? Who ordered them? Who ordered? I am asking who are… who asked them to go there? Who ordered? That is why…” Kharge said.
Nadda, Union Minister and Leader of the House, defended the police action, calling it a “normal law and order situation”. “Whatever my friend John Brittas has said, this is a very normal law and order situation that we have to understand. I have been a student activist. I have been arrested many times from the classroom in emergency days when the Congress party was ruling,” he said.
“It is a normal situation. A student activist has to face… and those who take law and order into their own hand, the police has to act accordingly. And the police has acted accordingly for those cases. They are trying to sensationalise.”
Delhi Police forcibly entered the CPI(M) Headquarters, AKG Bhavan, in an attempt to arrest SFI leader @aishe_ghosh.
The illegal attempt was firmly resisted by CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP @JohnBrittas, who forcefully intervened to stop the police from carrying out this unlawful action. pic.twitter.com/PMr1jgxsmn— CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) July 28, 2026
What happened at CPM office
On Tuesday afternoon, CPM’s social media handles shared videos of a confrontation between Brittas and Delhi Police personnel at AKG Bhavan, the CPM headquarters in Delhi. The Rajya Sabha MP is heard questioning the cops on how they barged into a national party’s office.
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“The police came in a private vehicle, some without uniform and left when questioned. This brazen intrusion into a political party office and the continuing witch hunt against student protesters expose the Modi government’s escalating assault on democratic rights. Instead of addressing the legitimate concerns of students, the state is using police power to intimidate, silence and criminalise dissent,” the CPM said.
The party said it strongly condemns “this unlawful action and stands firmly with the students fighting for justice, education, and democracy”. Ghosh, former president of the JNU students’ union, is now the joint secretary of the Students’ Federation of India, CPM’s students’ wing.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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