5 min readNew DelhiAug 17, 2026 06:05 PM IST
First published on: Aug 17, 2026 at 12:17 PM IST
Amid mounting pressure over the students’ protest in Jharkhand, the Congress has sent out a message to Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), its ally in the state’s ruling coalition. Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, has written to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, urging him to hear the protesters out and take appropriate action. A senior Congress leader told The Indian Express that while the JMM is a “strong ally”, the Grand Old party does not want students to feel that the Congress is not with them.
What Rahul wrote
In his letter to Soren that the Congress has shared on social media, Gandhi wrote, “The Congress party believes that the right to peaceful protest as enshrined in the Constitution of India is one of the central pillars of our democracy. We have, therefore, offered our full support to students protesting paper leaks and irregularities in the education system over the last few months. It is also our belief that the Indian education system has been captured by the RSS and BJP and transformed into a tool for the exploitation and oppression of students. It is no longer the robust knowledge system that it used to be a decade ago.”
“As you are aware, students in Jharkhand have also been protesting irregularities in the State recruitment examinations. Their protest has been peaceful, and their demands are legitimate. I appreciate that the Jharkhand government has begun a dialogue with them through a committee instituted by you. I believe that there is also agreement on several demands raised by the students. However, the protests continue, and some students remain on an indefinite hunger strike,” the Congress leader added.
Gandhi urged Soren to meet the protesters and take steps to address their grievances. “I am writing to suggest that you personally meet with representatives of the protesting students. This will help reinforce the government’s commitment to resolve their remaining concerns. The youth of India is its future. We owe them our solidarity and support at this moment of crisis. Please do your utmost to hear them out and take appropriate action towards the resolution of this issue,” he wrote.
Congress in a spot
Jharkhand is witnessing an agitation against alleged irregularities in recruitment by the state public service commission and staff selection commission. Coming barely a month after the massive student protest in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar against leaks of competitive exams’ question papers, this protest has put the Congress in a spot.
The Congress, which has been raising paper leaks through its ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ campaign, had voiced support for the Jantar Mantar protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party after the crackdown on the July 20 march to Parliament. Gandhi had also staged a demonstration outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence to demand accountability for the action against students.
Now, students in Jharkhand are protesting and the Congress is in a tricky spot because it is part of the ruling coalition. It is now facing questions over the Hemant Soren government’s handling of the agitation, with the BJP in opposition leaving no opportunity to attack. It is against this backdrop that Gandhi has written to Soren.
Asked why Gandhi has sought to write to Soren and the letter was put in the public domain, AICC’s Jharkhand in-charge K Raju said, “It is a students’ issue. They have been raising this point that Rahul Gandhi should intervene. Some have also said the Congress should withdraw support to the JMM. Because they have seen how Rahul Gandhi strongly stood in solidarity with students protesting at Jantar Mantar. At a time when Rahul Gandhi is taking up the issues of students in a big way across the country, he does not want (Jharkhand) students to think that he and the Congress party are not with them. We are with them. Rahul Gandhi is with them.”
At the same time, Raju said JMM was a strong ally of the Congress. He said the Jharkhand cabinet is likely to meet soon, and Chief Minister Soren might take steps to resolve the issue and may even meet the protesters.
Congress is drawing criticism for its alliance with JMM in Jharkhand 
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