Old, Unrelated Video Viral as Protest Against BJP for the New UGC Guidelines

This video is from December 2025 showing a protest by Odisha Congress against the National Herald case.

A video featuring a massive torch-lit march with posters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah is being shared on social media, with users claiming that the clip shows people protesting the recent University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations.

Some context: The UGC’s Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations, 2026 require all colleges and universities to set up Equal Opportunity Centres and anti-discrimination mechanisms to curb caste and other discrimination and ensure speedy grievance redressal.

• Several groups of general category students argue that the rules lack procedural safeguards which may lead to 'reverse' bias or misuse, and do not clearly protect all groups, sparking protests and legal challenges.

(Archives of similar claims can be found here and here.)

Is the claim true?: No, the claim is false as this video is from December 2025.

• It shows a protest by Odisha Congress unit against the alleged harassment of the Gandhis' during the National Herald case.

What we found: At first, we divided the viral clip into multiple screenshots and were led to a Facebook post featuring the same video. It was uploaded by Odisha Congress's official page on 19 December 2025.

• It noted that a torch rally was held in protest against the defaming of the names of Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi for a decade-long defamation of the National Herald.

• The post mentioned that several prominent leaders of Odisha state Congress joined the protest.

• Additionally, we found that Odisha Congress President Bhakta Charan Das also uploaded a visual of the same protest on his official X page from 20 December 2025.
  

For over a decade, the Modi-Shah led BJP has misused central agencies to silence the opposition and malign Shri Rahul Gandhi and Smt Sonia Gandhi through false cases. Truth has prevailed as affirmed by the Court.

I joined the torch rally organised by the Bhubaneswar Congress… pic.twitter.com/Yl1zXYcITT

— Bhakta Charan Das (@BhaktaCharanDas) December 20, 2025

• Additionally, a Delhi court refused to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) money laundering complaint against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald case.

• It stated that it was not based on a valid First Information Report under law, reported The Hindu on 17 December 2025.

Conclusion: The viral clip does not show a protest against the new UGC guidelines. It dates back to December 2025, before the new rules were enacted.

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