New Delhi, Feb 22 (NationPress) A collective of scholars and educators has condemned the shirtless demonstration by the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) at the prestigious AI Summit venue, highlighting that such a disruption at a crucial global event was not only in poor taste but also counter to national interests.

A consortium of prominent academicians and respected figures, including vice-chancellors, professors, lecturers, and other notable individuals, released a joint statement on Sunday, expressing dismay over the misguided and thoughtless strategy employed by the Youth Congress to protest against the AI event, which represents a pivotal moment in India's rise within the Artificial Intelligence (AI) domain.

“The demonstration connected to Rahul Gandhi projected a regrettable image at a time when international investors and tech leaders were evaluating India's reliability as a long-term ally in AI and advanced technologies,” they expressed in an open letter.

They asserted that the AI Impact Summit signified India's announcement to the world of its emergence as a serious and independent technological power during the Fourth Industrial Revolution, making the IYC's recent protest deeply regrettable and poorly thought out.

“The recent demonstration by the Indian Youth Congress at the India AI Impact Summit is profoundly regrettable and ill-considered. This was neither a partisan platform nor an appropriate venue for domestic political propaganda. Transforming an international forum into a stage for political protest reveals a significant lack of judgment and an inability to differentiate between legitimate democratic dissent and the necessity of preserving national prestige on a global stage,” it stated.

Expressing concern that such protests 'empower' voices from rival nations like China and Pakistan, they noted that the Youth Congress protest failed to adequately represent the broader national interest during such an important global engagement.

“At a moment when adversarial countries such as China and Pakistan openly questioned or attempted to undermine the significance of the summit, any domestic political behavior that seems to bolster those narratives warrants critical examination,” they added.

Over 100 educational professionals have signed the joint statement, including Vice-Chancellors of Kumaun University, Rajasthan Technical University, former VCs of Periyar University, Manipur University, and numerous professors, assistant professors, and research scholars from institutions nationwide.

The leading scholars emphasized the depth and diversity of innovation emerging both domestically and internationally, showcased at a grand event in the national capital, asserting that India's advancements in AI are the collective achievement of its scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, institutions, universities, and policy frameworks.

Therefore, using the event for political gain should have been the least of their concerns.

“According to the 2025 Global AI Vibrancy Index published by Stanford University, India is now ranked third globally in Artificial Intelligence, surpassed only by the US and China, reflecting significant advancements in research output, talent cultivation, and infrastructure. Notably, India is the first nation from the Global South to achieve this elite status,” they highlighted.