The shameful shirtless protest by members of the Rahul Gandhi-led Congress brigade was met with a strong backlash from people at the India AI Impact Summit 2026. The protest was seen as an attempt to shame Bharat before the world, including foreign leaders and delegates attending the summit. Much like the criticism Rahul Gandhi has voiced abroad multiple times, the act was viewed by supporters as an effort within the country to undermine the credibility of an international gathering.
Youth Congress Chief Uday Bhanu Chib Arrested
In a recent development, the man who led the ‘shirtless’ team to the international event two days back has been nabbed by the police. Uday Bhanu Chib, the national president of the Indian Youth Congress, has been arrested in connection with the shirtless protest at Bharat Mandapam during the AI Impact Summit. He was questioned for nearly 15 hours at the Tilak Marg police station before his arrest. Police sources said he did not cooperate during the interrogation and tried to mislead investigators, adding that they have sufficient evidence against him. He will now be produced before a court. This is the eighth arrest in the case.
The BJP strongly criticised the shirtless protest. Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla called it “characterless, brainless, and emotionless” and accused the Congress of undermining India’s progress. He said that for Congress, AI does not stand for Ambitious India, Artificial Intelligence, or Aspirational India, but for “anti-India,” adding that the party should be called the “Anti-National Congress” instead of the Indian National Congress.
He said the AI Summit was being praised globally by leaders such as President Macron, the United Nations Secretary General, and tech leaders like Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai, and even Shashi Tharoor had described it as excellent. Despite this, he claimed that Congress protested at Rahul Gandhi’s direction, and that the protest was not against the BJP or the Prime Minister, but against India’s achievements.
Who is Uday Bhanu Chib?
Uday Bhanu Chib comes from a politically active family. He is the son of senior Congress leader Hari Singh Chib, who has served as Vice President of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC).
Chib began his political journey with the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), the student wing of the Congress, where he served as national secretary. In the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), he later held the responsibility of Maharashtra in-charge. His strong connection to Jammu and Kashmir and active grassroots engagement on youth issues have made him a prominent figure in the region’s political landscape. Chib was appointed president of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) in September 2024.
Uday Bhanu Chib is an engineering graduate from Pune University. He also completed his MBA from Arni University in Himachal Pradesh. He has grown step by step within the Congress party. A major turning point in his career came when he was appointed President of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Youth Congress. In that role, he worked to organise and mobilise young people to address local issues.
