The chants grew louder and the crowd thicker at Jantar Mantar on Wednesday (July 22, 2026) as fresh groups of protesters from across the country poured into the protest site, many after overnight journeys by bus and train. Two days after the ‘Chalo Sansad’ march, the sit-in continued to draw new participants, many walking into the protest site with backpacks and rolled-up banners after travelling through the night. Volunteers directed them towards seating areas and distributed drinking water and food packets as more groups joined the gathering.
The United States on Wednesday (July 23, 2026) announced a landmark deal with Saudi Arabia that would establish a civilian nuclear program in the Gulf country, with Washington insisting the agreement includes safeguards against non-proliferation . The move comes as the United States under President Donald Trump fights a war with Iran that began in part over U.S. concerns with Tehran’s nuclear program — an issue that remains a key point of contention during now-stalled talks between the two foes.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (July 22, 2026) dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) against the forcible shifting of activist Sonam Wangchuk from the Jantar Mantar protest site to Safdarjung Hospital on the 21st day of his hunger strike. bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia observed that the issue of Mr. Wangchuk’s hospitalisation at Safdarjung Hospital was earlier raised by his wife before the high court and the matter was “disposed of to their satisfaction”.
The unprecedented protests by students across the country following the NEET question paper leak are not merely about one compromised examination. They reflect a deeper crisis of confidence in a system that was projected as the ultimate guardian of merit. When lakhs of students lose faith in the fairness of the process that determines their future, the nation’s conscience is shaken.
The ongoing wave of floods in some eastern districts of Assam has been the worst in 60 years, the State government said on Wednesday (July 22, 2026). The floods have affected more than 8 lakh people and claimed at least 30 human lives in less than a month. According to a late-night bulletin by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), floodwaters claimed the lives of 10 people across five districts during the last 24 hours.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi should apologise, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan must resign, and every person who assaulted the protesting students must be held accountable, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday (July 22, 2026), a day after his dramatic protest outside the Prime Minister’s residence. “They [the students] are our future. They are not terrorists,” Mr. Gandhi said at a press conference at the All India Congress Committee headquarters here.
Venezuela’s ousted president Nicolas Maduro is set to appear before a New York court on Wednesday (July 22, 2026), his third public hearing since the U.S. military captured him in a nighttime raid in January. The former leader, 63, and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been held in a Brooklyn jail since the U.S. military operation, awaiting trial on drug trafficking, firearms and other charges. American commandos snatched the pair from their compound in Caracas on January 3. The lightning operation combined naval, air and ground forces, deposing the strongman who had led Venezuela since 2013.
The Centre is considering removing restrictions on airline ownership in airport operators and vice versa, a move that could pave the way for airline groups such as the Tata Group-owned Air India to acquire stakes in airports, according to people familiar with the matter. “The Ministry of Civil Aviation is preparing a concept note for consultations with NITI Aayog and other government ministries on the proposed changes,” said a person aware of the discussions, adding that such a proposal will need a final nod from the Union Cabinet.
The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed an annual defence policy bill on Wednesday (July 22, 2026) that would authorise a record $1.15 trillion in funding for the Pentagon, as the divisive Iran war drags on. Though it traditionally sees significant bipartisan support, the 2027 National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) passed the lower chamber in a 216-212 vote, a sign of the growing polarization under President Donald Trump.
Sunny Deval, 29, with a band-aid on the entire length of his right forearm, walked into a makeshift tent made of yellow tarpaulin at the Jantar Mantar protest site and complained that his hand was aching again. Soon, a doctor behind the tables filled with medicines, with a stethoscope around his neck, signalled him to come to the end of the other end of the tables and made him sit on a chair and started unwrapping the band-aid.
Published - July 23, 2026 06:27 am IST