When a government says it is ready to answer every question — and the opposition walks out before the answers arrive — who is really speaking for students? Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri put that charge squarely on the Congress and its allies on Monday, 10 August 2026, accusing them of political theatre over student-related issues in Parliament.

Puri's post, tagged with the trending hashtag #राहुल_भागना_नहीं ('Rahul, don't run'), called out the opposition directly: 'Raising questions and then running away when the Government responds is not accountability, it is political theatre and escapism.' The target was unmistakable — Rahul Gandhi and the Congress Party, whom the BJP has long accused of staging performative walkouts rather than engaging in floor debate.

Amit Shah ready on the floor, says Puri

At the centre of the post is Union Home Minister Amit Shah, whom Puri described as fully prepared to address student concerns in Parliament. The framing is deliberate: by invoking Shah — one of the government's most formidable parliamentary debaters — Puri is signalling that the BJP is not avoiding the fight. The challenge, as Puri frames it, is whether the opposition will stay long enough to hear it.

'The Modi Govt. and HM Sh Amit Shah Ji are ready to answer every issue and question concerning the students on the floor of the Parliament,' Puri wrote, adding that the Congress and the rest of the opposition 'should have the courage to stay in the House and listen to those answers.'

A recurring script in Indian parliamentary politics

This is not a new accusation. Since 2014, government ministers across portfolios have repeatedly used social media to highlight episodes where opposition parties raise questions on education and youth matters — and then exit the House before replies are delivered. The pattern has played out across multiple sessions, and it has become a set-piece of BJP political communication: frame the walkout as cowardice, the government's presence as confidence.

The Congress, for its part, has consistently argued that walkouts are a legitimate parliamentary tool used to register protest against what it calls unresponsive or evasive governance. The two sides have traded this charge for years, and neither has shown much appetite for breaking the cycle.

What makes this round notable is the specific invocation of student issues — a constituency both parties claim to champion — and the sharp, hashtag-amplified language Puri deployed. 'If the opposition truly cares about students, they should stay, debate, and listen,' he wrote. It is a line designed less for Parliament and more for the social media court of public opinion.

The next Lok Sabha session, whenever student-related matters are listed for debate, will be the real test of whether either side's rhetoric translates into sustained engagement on the floor.