A day before the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, holds his second interaction with students at Dehradun, the Congress on Thursday (July 16, 2026) urged educator and innovator Sonam Wangchuk to end his fast unto death. In a post on X, party general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal assured Mr. Wangchuk that the Congress would carry out its fight against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Mr. Venugopal said Mr. Wangchuk had been on an indefinite hunger strike for 19 days demanding Mr. Pradhan’s resignation, a demand the Congress has been raising for over six weeks.
“We share the anguish and outrage that Shri Wangchuk ji feels, especially due to the lack of accountability within the Modi government for the collapse of the examination system,” Mr. Venugopal said, appealing to the activist to end his fast in view of his deteriorating health. “His concerns are our concerns,” he added, asserting that the party would continue pressing for the Minister’s resignation.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the party had consistently sought Mr. Pradhan’s resignation and noted that Mr. Gandhi had raised the issue during his interaction with students in Kota on June 17. He said the Congress leader would reiterate the demand during his “Chhatron Ki Goonj” programme in Dehradun on Friday (July 17, 2026).
Ahead of the event, Mr. Gandhi accused the BJP government in Uttarakhand of allowing the State to become an “epicentre” of examination paper leaks, alleging that recruitment for posts such as Patwari and Lekhpal had been reduced to a racket.
“A ‘system’ has taken root here regarding UKSSSC (Uttarakhand Subordinate Service Selection Commission) exams, where positions like Patwari or Lekhpal are secured not through merit, but at rates fixed by criminals,” Mr. Gandhi said in a post on X.
Calling paper leaks a “theft” of students’ rights, livelihoods and futures, Mr. Gandhi urged aspirants to join him in Dehradun on Friday (July 17, 2026), saying the Congress would not allow “the future to be auctioned off” or “dreams to be leaked away”.
