Indian Youth Congress protest at AI Summit in New Delhi on Friday, February 20. (Source: X)
New Delhi: A group of Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers on Friday, February 20, staged a brief protest, where they removed their shirts at an exhibition hall of the AI Impact Summit and raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
They were swiftly whisked away by the security personnel. A senior police officer said that around 10 people were detained when they were protesting at the AI Summit.
“They were removed immediately and were taken to Tilak Marg police station. No one will be allowed to breach the law and order situation,” the officer said.
The protesters repeatedly chanted the slogan, “PM is compromised,” and marched inside the hall, wearing or holding white T-shirts with images of Prime Minister Modi and US President Donald Trump printed on them, along with slogans such as “India US Trade Deal” and “Epstein Files.”
The ensuing melee witnessed heated exchanges between some of the attendees of the mega event and a few protesters.
While the protesters carried no party flags or any symbols to suggest they had any political affiliation, one of them claimed that he was “from the Indian Youth Congress.”
A Delhi Police personnel on duty said they are going to heighten security inside the halls after the “unfortunate episode”.
The protest, which lasted a few minutes before the group was bundled out of the hall, caught the guests and other visitors by surprise, many of whom watched the unfolding scenes in disbelief, given the significance of the AI Summit that India is hosting.
The AI Impact Summit is being held from February 16-20 at Bharat Mandapam, in which several heads of state, many global AI leaders, academicians and researchers, and heads of global tech giants, and philanthropists are taking part.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the AI Impact Summit 2026 here on Thursday, in the presence of several world leaders and heads of global tech giants.
As the protesters marched out of the hall and towards the lobby and stood against a massive backdrop mounted there, shouting the “PM is compromised”, a guest carrying an authenticated entry badge told them that it is they “who were compromised” as this episode “tarnished the image of India”. The guest urged security personnel to whisk them away from the venue.
National President of IYC, Uday Bhanu Chib, said, “Today, Youth Congress members went to the AI Summit and raised slogans, ‘PM is compromised.’ This anger isn’t just from our Youth Congress members. It’s from every young person who is unemployed today, and every single one of them knows that our Prime Minister is compromised.”
“This trade deal with the US, we all know, will harm our farmers and people. Only America will benefit. It’s our duty to raise their (youth) voice. Our country has democracy. We can hold peaceful protests anywhere,” he said.
This post was last modified on February 20, 2026 3:04 pm