Tarun Chugh targets Rahul Gandhi, Kejriwal over Jharkhand protest absence
Synopsis
BJP's newly appointed national office-in-charge Tarun Chugh accused Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal of a glaring double standard — loudly engaging with the Jantar Mantar student protest while going completely silent on a larger student agitation in Jharkhand, where the JMM government was ultimately forced to cancel all JSSC examinations.
Key Takeaways
Tarun Chugh , BJP National office-in-charge, attacked Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal on 18 August over their silence on the Jharkhand student protests.
Chugh alleged both leaders tried to 'hijack' the student agitation at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi but ignored a larger movement in Jharkhand.
Jharkhand students on hunger strike ended their fast after the JMM -led government cancelled all exams conducted by the JSSC and TDPL .
Chugh also highlighted BJP's cadre training drive across 234 constituencies in Tamil Nadu .
BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan said two training camps were held per constituency, with teachers to be trained for district-level rollout.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National office-in-charge and MP Tarun Chugh on Tuesday sharply criticised Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Convener Arvind Kejriwal, accusing them of staying silent on a major student agitation in Jharkhand even as they had earlier sought to politically capitalise on a similar protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Chugh made the remarks while speaking to reporters in Chennai on 18 August.
Chugh's Charge Against the Opposition
'It is unfortunate that those who kept trying to politically hijack the students' protest at Jantar Mantar were completely absent from such a major student movement in Jharkhand. The Rahul Gandhi camp and the Kejriwal camp did not say a single word about it,' Chugh said.
He further alleged that neither Gandhi nor Kejriwal spoke up for the students or appealed to any government on their behalf. 'The Congress' double standards are clearly visible, showing that what it says publicly is different from what it actually does,' he alleged. The remarks signal a BJP effort to frame the opposition's selective engagement with student protests as political opportunism.
The Jharkhand Student Agitation
The protest in Jharkhand centred on alleged irregularities in the state's recruitment examinations. Students who had been on a hunger strike ended their fast after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led state government announced the cancellation of all examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) and TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL). The concession marks a significant climbdown by the Hemant Soren administration, which had faced sustained pressure from aspirants over alleged paper leaks and procedural lapses.
This comes amid a broader pattern of student movements across India targeting recruitment exam irregularities — a politically sensitive issue that has energised youth voters in several states.
BJP's Organisational Push in Tamil Nadu
Chugh also addressed the BJP's organisational meeting held in Chennai, underscoring the party's emphasis on cadre training. 'The leaders and workers of the BJP work throughout the year to expand the party. Here, the organisation and the ideology is more important than any person, which is why every person undergoes training. We train our cadres on the issues that the party is working on,' he said.
He added that such training programmes would soon be rolled out across every district in the state, signalling a structured grassroots expansion drive ahead of future electoral cycles in Tamil Nadu.
Tamilisai Soundararajan on the Training Camps
BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan elaborated on the scale of the exercise: 'Today we had our training camp. This training camp was organised in 234 constituencies. So, now nobody will be able to say that BJP is not strong in Tamil Nadu as we have conducted two camps in each constituency, with our party workers. These are the camps where the teachers are trained, who in turn will go and give training in the district camps.'
The BJP's dual focus — attacking the opposition on Jharkhand and consolidating its Tamil Nadu organisation — reflects the party's intent to build both narrative and structural ground ahead of the next state election cycle.
Point of View
And the opposition's relative quiet on the issue makes the contrast easy to exploit. However, the BJP's own record on student recruitment exam controversies — including controversies in states it governs — means the 'double standards' charge cuts both ways. The deeper story here is the JSSC cancellation itself, which validates student grievances and raises questions about examination governance that no party has fully answered. Framing it purely as an opposition silence story risks obscuring the institutional failure that triggered the protest.
NationPress
19 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Tarun Chugh accuse Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal of?
Tarun Chugh accused both leaders of attempting to politically exploit the student protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi while remaining completely silent on a larger student agitation in Jharkhand. He alleged this exposed the Congress's double standards between public rhetoric and actual action.
Why were students protesting in Jharkhand?
Students in Jharkhand were protesting over alleged irregularities in state recruitment examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) and TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL). They were on a hunger strike demanding accountability and cancellation of the tainted exams.
How did the Jharkhand student protest end?
The students ended their hunger strike after the JMM-led Jharkhand state government announced the cancellation of all examinations conducted by the JSSC and TDPL, conceding to the core demand of the agitating students.
What was the BJP's organisational activity in Tamil Nadu?
The BJP held training camps across all 234 assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu, with two camps conducted per constituency. The camps trained teachers who will in turn conduct district-level training for party workers, as part of a broader cadre expansion effort.
