5 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 25, 2026 03:38 PM IST
Protesters clashed with police in several districts of Bihar, including capital Patna and Chapra, as the protests against the NEET paper leak expanded to a nationwide protest.
Clashes also broke out between the police personnel and protesters in at least three districts: Patna, Aurangabad, and Chapra.
Janshakthi Janta Dal (JJD) chief Tej Pratap Yadav was detained in Patna after he joined the protesters who had gathered in support of the statewide bandh over NEET paper leak, and police action on protesting students over the past few days, PTI reported.
Yadav joined protesters during a sit-in protest at Ram Gulam Chowk in Patna, from where he was taken away in a police vehicle. Clinging to the vehicle door, Yadav said, “We are standing shoulder to shoulder with the students. If need be, I am willing to die for the students’ rights.”
Left-wing protesters carrying banners of All India Students Association (AISA) and Revolutionary Youth Association (RYA) blocked the Samastipur-Patna main road by burning tyres and raising slogans against the government, PTI reported.
Visuals shared by news agency ANI showed damaged police vehicles. They also showed miscreants attacking cars, stone-pelting civilians, and lathicharging police personnel in Chapra, Patna, and Aurangabad.
In Bihar’s Siwan district, AISA, RYA and other left-wing organisations also staged protests at JP Chowk against police action on students on July 22, it added.
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Visuals of police vehicles being vandalised and toppled in Patna circulated over social media, according to ANI. The police personnel also used tear gas shells to disperse the protesters.
#WATCH | Patna, Bihar: A clash erupts between the police and protestors after the call for a statewide shutdown today over the NEET paper leak issue and Police action during student protests in the state. Heavy police force was deployed in the area during the protest. They are… pic.twitter.com/fDL6GFr7rR
— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2026
Police allege stonepelting, detain protesters
Former MLA and CPI(ML) leader Amarjeet Kushwaha, present during the protest, told PTI, “Protest has been underway at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar for the last 26 days. Students also came out on the streets of Patna on Wednesday. However, both in Delhi and in Patna, they faced brutal police action. Even women and girls were not spared.”
He alleged that the government has adopted a dictatorial approach towards handling protests, according to the report.
Meanwhile, speaking to the reporters today, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Patna, Raj Kishore, said, “People have come from outside as well, and we have caught those who pelted stones…”
Protesters also pelted stones and bricks at police personnel at Dak Bungalow Chouraha in Patna, following which police detained several students, according to PTI reports.
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“Protesters pelted stones at us. They even tried to break the barricading. We have detained several students. Police is on high alert. We will trace the troublemakers and take appropriate action against them,” Patna SSP Kartikeya K Sharma told reporters.
#WATCH | Bihar: Students protest in Patna turn violent as protesters clash with Police.
A statewide shutdown has been called today over the NEET paper leak issue and Police action during student protests in the state. pic.twitter.com/JFMmHUHg7d
— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2026
Bihar Bandh today
Security has been tightened with heavy police deployment in Patna, Siwan, Jehanabad, Sheikhpura, Rohtas and other districts across the state, the PTI report stated.
Although there wasn’t much impact of the bandh on normal life in Patna, police did initiate flag marches in several areas, including Patna’s Paliganj locality, as a precautionary measure, the report noted.
#WATCH | Bihar: Police vehicles vandalised and toppled during protest in Patna.
A clash erupted between the police and protestors after the call for a statewide shutdown today over the NEET paper leak issue and Police action during student protests in the state. They are also… pic.twitter.com/cnwhMJVWa4
— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2026
All private schools in Patna are also shut in view of the statewide bandh.
On Wednesday, violent clashes broke out at JP Golambar in Patna as police used water cannons, tear gas shells and resorted to lathi charge to stop the protesters marching towards Raj Bhavan under the banner of the AISA. The demonstration was organised in solidarity with the ongoing student agitation at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar and to protest the recent police action against protesters there, according to a report in The Indian Express.
#WATCH | Bihar: As students protest in Patna turn violent, Police personnel use tear gas shells to disperse the protesters.
A statewide shutdown has been called today over the NEET paper leak issue and Police action during student protests in the state. pic.twitter.com/5wtNZqYzZm
— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2026
Moreover, on Thursday, thousands of protesters in Katihar, Darbhanga and Begusarai marched against alleged irregularities in competitive examinations. The situation soon escalated into stone pelting in Katihar, with the police using “mild lathicharge” in Begusarai to push back protesters. Darbhanga, too, reported stone pelting and lathi charge. Several policemen were wounded, according to officials, with the police eventually sending reinforcements.
