Modi opposes court cases for protesters, urges forgiveness

Dan Strumpf, Bloomberg News on Aug 2, 2026

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he opposed punishment and court proceedings for the young protesters who marched in New Delhi and other Indian cities in recent weeks, saying “children make mistakes” and society should “forgive” them for using foul language.

“Punishing them, dragging them through the courts or subjecting them to harassment within society will not change the situation,” Modi said in a selfie-style video posted Friday. “I want to forgive them. And I request society to accept this sentiment of mine.”

Several videos of youngsters using crude language have circulated widely in the wake of the protests, drawing condemnation from some pro-Modi figures.

The question of whether authorities would prosecute student protesters in the wake of the nationwide “Cockroach Janta Party” demonstrations has become a major flash point since the protests were called off following the July 25 resignation of Indian Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

The CJP last week threatened to resume demonstrations if the government goes back on assurances to drop police complaints against the marchers. Movement leaders have also said the party would respond with new protests if students were harassed by the police.

In a video response to Modi posted Saturday, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke said the prime minister should post another video apologizing to protesters, especially to women, for acts of violence by authorities during the demonstrations.

“In tonight’s video, I want Modiji apologize to all the girls who were beaten so brutally by the police,” he said in a post on X.

Beginning as a satirical movement, the CJP mobilized thousands of youngsters, first in New Delhi and then across the country, in the wake of a series of scandals in the country’s education system. Police responded with batons and tear gas against protesters at many of the marches, fueling anger that culminated with Pradhan’s resignation.

Modi has recently sought to appeal directly to the youngsters with a series of videos on Instagram, the social-media platform where many of the demonstrations were organized.

In Friday’s video, Modi said “some mischievous youngsters used extremely vulgar and abusive language — language that does not befit any civilized society,” saying students directly insulted him and his late mother.

“But today, I want to say that children make mistakes,” he said. “Childhood and youth are also the time when there is an opportunity to learn from those mistakes. That is the nature of youth. I can therefore understand the anger that exists within society.”

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