Rahul's 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' in Pune preceded by ABVP-NSUI clash

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi will interact with students today, 22 August, at the SSPMS College grounds in Pune, Maharashtra, as part of the Congress party’s ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ campaign. Today’s programme will be Gandhi’s fourth major engagement with students after previous interactions in Kota, Dehradun and Prayagraj.

The Pune Police have granted permission for the event, specifying 30 conditions apparently to ensure security and maintain public order. Organisers have been prohibited from displaying any 'objectionable' posters, banners, or images during the gathering.

The Pune event will focus primarily on issues faced by female students across the country. Open discussions will address education, safety, equality, competitive examinations and career opportunities. The campaign aims to provide a safe, independent platform for students — especially women — to voice their concerns and ideas, while highlighting education and employment challenges within broader political and social discussions.

The build-up to the event has also seen a clash between members of the RSS-linked Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Congress-backed National Students Union of India (NSUI) at the COEP Technological University hostel campus on Friday, 21 August. Police were deployed in large numbers on the campus following the incident.

While ABVP members claimed that Congress workers were "forcing" female students of the COEP to register for 'Chhatron ki Gunj', Congress leaders claimed that two female students, who had spoken in support of the event, were confined and threatened inside the hostel by ABVP workers. Senior Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar, who visited the hostel after the incident, claimed ABVP workers were threatening the two female students.

Launched to amplify youth and student voices nationwide, the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ campaign has seen Gandhi engage with students on critical issues like exam paper leaks and educational reforms. During his interaction in Prayagraj, he emphasised youth as India’s greatest strength and key to the nation’s future.

The Pune event comes a day after Gandhi’s dharna at a police station in Delhi demanding an FIR over the use of pellet guns on demonstrators during the 20 July protests at Jantar Mantar. The over seven-hour dharna resulted in the police registering an FIR.

After the Congress Working Committee meeting on19 August, general-secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal had announced that Gandhi would continue to interact directly with students and extend ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ to 800 towns and smaller cities.