Congress MLAs Clash With Police during Protest; Former CM Hooda Alleges “Goons in Uniform”

Chandigarh, August 27, 2026: Congress MLAs staged a spirited protest on Thursday, the opening day of the Haryana Assembly’s Monsoon Session, against the alleged theft of Ram Temple offerings and the reported lathi-charge on students at Jantar Mantar.
Dressed in black, the Congress legislators marched towards the Assembly raising slogans such as “Chadhawa Chor Kahan Milenge, BJP Ke Daftar Mein.” Police erected barricades at several points to stop the march and used force during the confrontation. Congress leaders claimed that several MLAs were injured in the ensuing scuffle.
Former chief minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda condemned the police action, saying citizens and elected representatives had a constitutional right to raise their concerns. Alleging that police manhandled him and other legislators, Hooda said, “It seemed as if the government had sent goons in police uniform.”
On the alleged temple offering theft, Hooda demanded an impartial probe, saying the issue involved the sentiments of millions of devotees. He questioned the delay in registering the FIR, pointing out that the allegations surfaced in early June, an SIT was constituted on June 13, its preliminary report came on June 23, and the FIR was registered on June 25.
Citing the SIT report, Hooda alleged that prescribed security protocols—including frisking, pocketless clothing for staff and 180-day CCTV preservation—were not followed while counting offerings. He claimed CCTV footage was retained for only 45 days and questioned why officials and trust management responsible for the lapses had not faced action.
 The Two Time CM, Hooda also questioned how “big names” received a clean chit, asking whether action against lower-level employees alone was sufficient in a theft involving crores of rupees.
On the Jantar Mantar incident, Hooda alleged that even an FIR was initially not registered over injuries caused by pellet guns. He said the government was forced to act following Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s protest and a sit-in at the police station. He vowed that the Haryana Congress would raise the issue both on the streets and inside the Assembly.
Hooda termed Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation a victory for protesting students and demanded an apology from the government, action against those responsible for the lathi-charge and pellet-gun injuries, and withdrawal of cases registered against protesters.
Targeting the government over paper leaks, Hooda said the problem had assumed “epidemic proportions”. Citing Congress figures, he claimed more than 152 paper-leak cases had surfaced across the country, affecting around 7.5 crore aspirants, while Haryana had witnessed over 30 such cases involving examinations including HCS, CET, SI recruitment, dental surgeons, police constables, Gram Sachiv, clerks, PTIs, HTET, B-Pharmacy and board exams.
Hooda said unemployment and alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations had deepened frustration among the youth. He alleged that a large racket involving examination papers and jobs was operating and demanded strict action against those jeopardising the future of young aspirants.