Thousands of supporters of India’s youth-led movement have been protesting since June, demanding the education minister resign over exam paper leaks. This is the biggest challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his third term.
Past Protests
India has seen numerous mass protests over the past two decades. In 2011, anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare started a hunger strike, leading to hundreds of thousands rallying in support and the eventual passage of an anti-graft law.
In 2012, public fury over the gang-rape of a young woman on a moving bus in New Delhi erupted into mass protests, leading to changes in laws to expand the definition of sexual assault and the setup of fast-track courts.
In 2019, India’s parliament passed a new citizenship law, sparking protests and sectarian violence that killed at least 76 people. The law aimed to fast-track citizenship for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Christians who arrived in India on or before December 31, 2014, from neighboring Muslim-majority countries.
In 2020, thousands of farmers blocked roads and railway tracks in protests against new legislation that they say could pave the way for the government to stop buying grain at guaranteed prices. The protests lasted more than a year before Modi repealed the laws.
In 2022, an overhaul of military recruitment triggered rail blockades and protests across the country. Recruits, veterans, and opposition leaders objected to the introduction of fixed four-year contracts.
In 2024, thousands of doctors took to the streets for months after the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in a government hospital, demanding safer workplaces and a crackdown on violence against women.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
