'Shame for our country!': Akhilesh Yadav slams Youth Congress over ‘shirtless’ protest at AI summit
Akhilesh Yadav, chief of the Samajwadi Party and an ally of the Indian National Congress within the INDIA bloc, on Saturday criticised the Indian Youth Congress for staging a “shirtless” protest during the AI Impact Summit, saying the act brought “shame” to the country in front of foreign delegates.
Speaking to reporters in Jhansi, Yadav said political differences should not be aired in a manner that embarrasses the nation on an international stage.
“We may have internal rifts and everyone knows the BJP lies. But they should have refrained from doing something that brings shame to our country before foreign delegates and world representatives,” he said.
#WATCH | Jhansi, UP: On Congress Protest at AI summit, Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav says, "... We may have internal rifts, but what Congress did on the global platform was not appropriate. They should have refrained from doing something that brings shame to our country in… pic.twitter.com/pdT4P4n21z
— ANI (@ANI) February 21, 2026
The controversy erupted after Youth Congress workers on Friday protested inside Bharat Mandapam, waving T-shirts with slogans targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The protest quickly snowballed into a political row, triggering counter-protests and clashes between Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress workers in Puducherry and Indore.
A day earlier, BJP MP Anurag Thakur accused Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and the Youth Congress of being “anti-India,” alleging the protest violated democratic norms and damaged India’s image globally.
Congress leaders, however, defended the protest. Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge said the manner of protest may not have been in the “right spirit,” but argued the BJP should be embarrassed over alleged Chinese products displayed at the event.
Another Karnataka Minister, Eshwara Khandre, maintained that protesting against government policies is a fundamental right.
Meanwhile, legal action followed the demonstrations. The Patiala House Court on Saturday rejected bail pleas of all four arrested Youth Congress workers, sending them to five days of police custody, as the political sparring over the protest continues to intensify.
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