The political standoff over examination paper leaks intensified on Thursday (July 23) as ruling and Opposition MPs took their protests outside the chambers and into the Parliament complex, with both sides accusing each other of preventing meaningful discussion during the ongoing session.

Opposition parties, led by senior Congress leaders, demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged paper leaks, while MPs from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) accused the Opposition of deliberately disrupting Parliament despite the government's stated willingness to debate the issue.

The Centre has maintained that it is prepared to discuss the paper leak controversy, but the Opposition has insisted that Pradhan must step down. The issue has gained renewed prominence following the large-scale protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party in Delhi on Monday.

The Opposition demonstration was led by Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule.

The protesting MPs raised slogans over alleged examination paper leaks and also highlighted the controversy surrounding the alleged theft of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Meanwhile, NDA MPs, including JD(U)'s Sanjay Jha and BJP leaders Manoj Tiwari, Tarun Chugh and Dilip Saikia, staged a counter-protest, accusing the Opposition of obstructing parliamentary proceedings.

Congress MP Imran Masood said: “They (NDA MPs) were raising their slogans, and we were raising ours. Our slogans were louder, and we had more conviction,” The Indian Express reported.

After the protest, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra criticised the government for what she described as an unprecedented demonstration by ruling party MPs outside Parliament and questioned its response to the concerns of students.

“Have you ever seen in the history of our democracy that the government’s MPs protest outside Parliament? They can’t run Parliament; they are extremely weak and cowardly. What kind of treatment is being meted out to the youth in this democracy? They are being oppressed for legitimate demands; lathis and tear gas are being used on them,” she said.

She also questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi, “who takes credit for every Indian’s achievement, isn’t taking responsibility for the paper leaks”. “152 papers have been leaked and no one has been punished. Modi ji should take responsibility for this,” she said.

The BJP, however, defended the NDA protest and reiterated its demand that the Opposition allow Parliament to function.

BJP MP Dilip Saikia said NDA MPs were protesting against the obstruction “created by the Congress-led Opposition in the running of the Parliamentary proceedings”.

“We urge the Congress not to run away and participate in the vital discussions regarding the students of our country in the Parliament,” he said.

The competing demonstrations reflected the deepening political deadlock, with the government insisting on a parliamentary debate on the issue and the Opposition continuing to make the Education Minister's resignation a key condition for moving forward.