https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/524730/feed The latest news and top stories on Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in Parliament’s Lower House, India. He is known for being a four-term Member of Parliament representing Amethi and Wayanad, and a former Congress President and Vice President. His responsibilities include holding the government accountable, and he champions youth empowerment social justice and unity through the Bharat Jodo Yatras. en https://assets-v2.i-scmp.com/production/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg Reuters Reuters Despite ⁠tens of thousands of security personnel deployed to stop them, youth protesters in India scaled barricades last ⁠week, chanted anti-government slogans and scuffled with police officers trying to drag them away. “Long live the revolution,” shouted one young man before police bundled him into a bus. Street protests in India this year are likely to be higher than at any time in the past decade, the independent Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project has said, as dissent mounts... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3371244/modi-under-pressure-indias-youth-protests-rise-highest-level-decade https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3371244/modi-under-pressure-indias-youth-protests-rise-highest-level-decade Sat, 17 Oct 2026 07:13:37 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Two leaders of India’s youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) were remanded in custody for five days on Wednesday, as police ratcheted up efforts to clamp down on anti-election commission protests. CJP activists and opposition parties have defied a security crackdown to demand the resignation of India’s chief election commissioner, accusing the poll body of manipulating voter rolls to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party. The commission, which oversees voting in the world’s most... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370868/india-jails-cockroach-leaders-over-protests-against-alleged-voter-roll-manipulation https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370868/india-jails-cockroach-leaders-over-protests-against-alleged-voter-roll-manipulation Wed, 14 Oct 2026 08:48:44 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji Indian opposition leaders and student activists marched on the Supreme Court on Monday to demand the resignation of the country’s election chief over alleged voter roll manipulation, as authorities erected heavy barricades and shut six metro stations across New Delhi. The rally went ahead after the Chief Justice of India turned down a meeting request from an opposition delegation, urging them instead to file a formal petition. Mainstream opposition parties have sought to harness a groundswell of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370630/indias-opposition-marches-supreme-court-cockroach-protests-gain-ground https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370630/indias-opposition-marches-supreme-court-cockroach-protests-gain-ground Mon, 12 Oct 2026 12:40:36 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The leaders of India’s youth-led online “cockroach” movement were released on Sunday, their lawyer said, a day after they were detained to thwart a major protest against the chief election commissioner. The leaders pledged on Sunday to continue their campaign against the election commissioner, hours after they were released. Thousands of protesters were detained before Saturday’s planned demonstration in New Delhi, according to the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which called on supporters to keep... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370476/indias-cockroach-party-leaders-freed-election-chief-protests-mount https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370476/indias-cockroach-party-leaders-freed-election-chief-protests-mount Sun, 11 Oct 2026 05:19:50 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji Elon Musk’s accusation that powerful Indian business interests are blocking Starlink’s entry into India has sparked a political row, but analysts say the dispute also highlights security concerns, regulatory hurdles and strategic calculations shaping the satellite service’s expansion across Asia. In a post on social media, Musk said Starlink was licensed in more than 165 countries and had spent five years complying with Indian laws and regulations. “So why still no licence? Is Ambani the real... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370387/elon-musks-starlink-row-india-exposes-asias-deeper-battle-over-satellite-power https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370387/elon-musks-starlink-row-india-exposes-asias-deeper-battle-over-satellite-power Fri, 09 Oct 2026 12:12:28 +0000 Reuters Reuters Indian police detained several opposition lawmakers in the capital of New Delhi on Tuesday for trying to breach barricades during a protest march to demand the resignation of the election chief over a controversial revision of voter lists. The march presents a fresh political challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi midway into his ‌third term, just months after similar protests forced the resignation of his education minister over exam paper leaks. Parties opposing Modi’s government along with... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369942/india-opposition-lawmakers-detained-over-protest-against-election-chief https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369942/india-opposition-lawmakers-detained-over-protest-against-election-chief Tue, 06 Oct 2026 12:01:02 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s opposition parties and the youth-led “cockroach” movement took to the streets on Friday, demanding action over alleged irregularities in voter rolls and calling for the resignation of the country’s chief election commissioner, as the combined pressure from the two groups poses a new challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. The protests have brought the opposition closer to the youth movement that it has sought to engage with, according to analysts. While their convergence... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369598/indias-modi-faces-dual-pressure-cockroach-movement-opposition-parties https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369598/indias-modi-faces-dual-pressure-cockroach-movement-opposition-parties Fri, 02 Oct 2026 11:02:05 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s “cockroach” youth movement is testing whether it can turn anger over education and jobs into a broader challenge to the country’s political establishment, two months after its protests helped force an education minister to resign over alleged entrance exam leaks. Its latest target is another powerful institution: the country’s election watchdog. The shift marks a transition for the movement from high-profile demonstrations in New Delhi to a more diffuse campaign of school audits,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368821/indias-cockroach-movement-targets-election-chief-political-pivot https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368821/indias-cockroach-movement-targets-election-chief-political-pivot Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:30:17 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s student-led “cockroach” protests, which began as anger over alleged entrance exam leaks, are now becoming a broader test of whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government can contain young Indians’ frustration over education, jobs and accountability. The fast-growing movement gained political momentum on Tuesday when opposition leader Rahul Gandhi of the Congress party and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were forcibly removed after a gathering with about 100 fellow lawmakers outside... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3361479/indias-cockroach-protests-rare-political-opening-opposition https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3361479/indias-cockroach-protests-rare-political-opening-opposition Wed, 22 Jul 2026 12:00:13 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s first privately developed orbital rocket has given the country’s fledgling commercial space industry a long-sought proof point, but analysts say Skyroot Aerospace must now show it can launch regularly, cheaply and reliably enough to win customers in a crowded global market. Skyroot’s Vikram-1 rocket lifted off on Saturday from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, carrying several customer payloads and in-orbit experiments on its... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3361253/india-joins-china-us-commercial-space-race-skyroot-launch https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3361253/india-joins-china-us-commercial-space-race-skyroot-launch Tue, 21 Jul 2026 04:00:15 +0000 Reuters Reuters A key road named after US President Donald Trump in India’s opposition-ruled tech hub of Hyderabad has drawn criticism from ‌Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party, which dismissed the move as “hypocrisy”. US-India ties have deteriorated during Trump’s second term, with Washington imposing high tariffs on Indian goods, punishing New Delhi for purchasing Russian oil, and engaging closely with India’s arch-rival Pakistan. The road in the capital of the southern state of Telangana, ruled by... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3358244/indian-tech-hub-names-road-trump-draws-flak-pm-modis-party https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3358244/indian-tech-hub-names-road-trump-draws-flak-pm-modis-party Wed, 24 Jun 2026 13:55:35 +0000 Nayan Seth Nayan Seth US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday attempted to defuse escalating tensions over the recent killing of three Indian sailors by American naval forces off the coast of Oman. Speaking to the media after their first bilateral meeting in 16 months, Trump said both Washington and New Delhi continue to “work together” on the issue, calling commercial vessel operations “a rough profession”. “I heard about that,” Trump added, without offering any condolences or... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3357475/trump-shows-no-regret-over-three-indian-sailors-deaths-meeting-modi https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3357475/trump-shows-no-regret-over-three-indian-sailors-deaths-meeting-modi Wed, 17 Jun 2026 18:31:52 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji On Great Nicobar, a remote island located closer to Indonesia than mainland India, New Delhi is embarking on one of its biggest developments in decades. The US$9 billion project is intended to transform the country’s southernmost tip into a major transport hub comprising a transhipment port, an international airport and associated logistical facilities. Spread across 166 sq km (64 square miles), the project in India’s Andaman and Nicobar archipelago is slated for completion over three decades,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3354565/indias-us9-billion-island-megaport-sharpens-chinas-malacca-dilemma https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3354565/indias-us9-billion-island-megaport-sharpens-chinas-malacca-dilemma Fri, 22 May 2026 12:18:17 +0000 Junaid Kathju Junaid Kathju As the Iran war reshapes West Asian geopolitics, Pakistan has unexpectedly emerged as a backchannel mediator between Tehran and Washington, potentially sidelining India’s efforts to assert itself as a credible global diplomatic actor. India, despite its growing partnerships with the US, Israel and the Gulf states, has been absent from any meaningful conflict-resolution initiative on Iran. Umer Karim, a political science researcher at the University of Birmingham, said India’s strengthening... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3347999/pakistan-steps-iran-mediator-while-india-watches-wings https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3347999/pakistan-steps-iran-mediator-while-india-watches-wings Thu, 26 Mar 2026 09:21:12 +0000 Biman Mukherji,Maria Siow Biman Mukherji,Maria Siow The sinking of an Iranian warship by a US submarine off Sri Lanka’s coast has raised concerns across South and Southeast Asia that the Middle East conflict may be expanding into the Indian Ocean, while also intensifying political pressure in India for a stronger response. Analysts said the strike’s location near key sea lanes linking Asia with the Gulf had heightened fears the conflict could spill into waters vital to regional trade while also raising doubts in New Delhi over its cautious... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3345575/us-sinking-iranian-warship-near-sri-lanka-sparks-regional-anxiety-pressure-india https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3345575/us-sinking-iranian-warship-near-sri-lanka-sparks-regional-anxiety-pressure-india Thu, 05 Mar 2026 10:00:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse India’s parliament pushed through an overhaul of a rural employment scheme on Friday despite an opposition walkout and a session that stretched well past midnight. The Developed India Employment Guarantee and Sustenance Mission bill will supersede a decades-old rural jobs scheme for millions of the country’s poorest. It replaces the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, a defining legacy of the previous left-leaning Congress government, which was in power from 2004 to 2014. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3337121/indias-parliament-approves-divisive-rural-jobs-scheme-despite-opposition-walkout https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3337121/indias-parliament-approves-divisive-rural-jobs-scheme-despite-opposition-walkout Fri, 19 Dec 2025 12:57:54 +0000 Reuters Reuters India’s Supreme Court modified its order on stray dogs on Friday, directing that those picked up from streets in and around Delhi be released after sterilisation and immunisation, following a storm of protests from animal lovers. Earlier this month, the court ruled that all stray dogs in Delhi and its suburbs be moved to shelters following a surge in dog bites and cases of rabies. Critics of the ruling had said it could not be implemented because there were not enough shelters. Many animal... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3322840/indias-top-court-modifies-stray-dog-order-after-protests-animal-lovers https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3322840/indias-top-court-modifies-stray-dog-order-after-protests-animal-lovers Fri, 22 Aug 2025 10:24:17 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg India’s opposition was preparing to confront Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government over the controversial revision of electoral rolls in the eastern state of Bihar on Monday, as parliament convened for its monsoon session. Just months before crucial state elections, the Election Commission of India in June announced a sweeping revision of Bihar’s electoral rolls in a move that has ignited a political firestorm. Opposition parties and activists have taken to the streets and courts, warning... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3318949/indian-parliament-starts-monsoon-season-will-voter-roll-change-create-political-storm https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3318949/indian-parliament-starts-monsoon-season-will-voter-roll-change-create-political-storm Mon, 21 Jul 2025 03:44:25 +0000