A court in Indore granted bail to activist Sangita Pandey on Friday, July 24, 2026, while her husband Prahlad Pandey remains in jail after their arrest for protesting near Madhya Pradesh Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya’s residence. The protest was in response to Mr. Vijayvargiya’s alleged remarks on the ongoing nationwide student protests, where he reportedly called students ‘insects’ during his address in the State Assembly on July 21.
The Indore-based activists staged a sit-in on Wednesday, July 23, 2026, in front of Mr. Vijayvargiya’s residence in the Nanda Nagar area, accusing him of making the derogatory remarks. The scenes outside the Cabinet Minister’s family residence turned chaotic after the local police tried to remove them from the sit-in. A viral video shows Mr. Pandey telling reporters that he has come to question Mr. Vijayvargiya on three points, but an officer interrupts the conversation, leading to an altercation between the police and the media.
The activist duo was taken into custody under Section 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita on Wednesday and an FIR was later registered against them under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at the Pardeshipura police station. They were produced before a court on the same day and sent to judicial custody. However, Sangita Pandey was granted bail by the ACP court on Friday evening.
The controversy surrounding Mr. Vijayvargiya’s remarks has led to a war of words between BJP and Congress leaders inside and outside the House. Congress’ Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Umang Singhar, alleged that Mr. Vijayvargiya used the term ‘insect’ to describe the protesting students. However, Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar said that he had checked the Assembly proceedings records and that Mr. Vijayvargiya had not used the term.
Mr. Vijayvargiya also denied making the remarks, stating that he did not say it and that the allegations were baseless. He also threatened to consider a defamation case against Mr. Singhar. The controversy has sparked a heated debate, with many calling for Mr. Vijayvargiya to apologize for his alleged remarks.
