Delhi Police on Friday (February 20, 2026) arrested four Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers in connection with the protest at the AI Impact Summit venue in Delhi and is probing a wider conspiracy angle in the case, an official said.
Earlier in the day, they had detained around 15 IYC workers for holding a ‘shirtless protest’ inside an exhibition hall at the Summit, holding T-shirts printed with images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump along with slogans against the government and the India-U.S. deal.
The arrested accused have been identified as Krishna Hari, national secretary of Youth Congress from Bihar; Kundan Yadav, state secretary of Bihar; Ajay Kumar, state president of Uttar Pradesh; and Narasimha Yadav from Telangana, he said.
Police said all the four accused will be produced before the Patiala House Court later in the day; an FIR is being registered and several serious charges are being invoked.
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They said the accused allegedly engaged in a protracted scuffle with security personnel and police staff deployed at the venue.
Investigators are examining if there was any larger conspiracy behind the incident, officials said.
A senior police officer had earlier said that around 15 people were detained and taken to Tilak Marg police station. He had said strict action would be taken against anyone attempting to disrupt the law and order.
BJP slams Congress
The BJP slammed the Congress for its youth wing workers’ protest, alleging that a “ruckus” was created at the venue to sabotage India’s global image at the behest of former party chief Rahul Gandhi.
The ensuing melee witnessed heated exchanges between some of the attendees of the mega event and a few protesters.
Posting a video of the protest, the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) said the question being asked is: Why exactly did young Congress workers need to raise their voices against the “compromised PM inside the AI Summit.” “In a country where the media, the system, and the prime minister himself have already been compromised, what platform remains to raise a voice against it? If we protest on the streets, we are stopped. Under the guise of IT Rules, social media posts against the government are taken down. The media has become the government’s mouthpiece. So, what avenue remains open to us?” the Youth Congress asked.
“We are not against the AI Summit. We are against the compromises being made with India’s interests. When the country’s farmers are being bargained away, anti-India trade agreements are being signed, and the youth is kept unemployed while being dragged into politics of hate, should we stay silent?” it asked.
It said India belonged to its 140 crore citizens.
“If we know how to walk the path shown by Mahatma Gandhi, we also know how to walk the path shown by Sardar Bhagat Singh. We will never allow the interests of the country’s youths and farmers to be bargained away. Inquilab Zindabad,” the IYC said in its post in Hindi.
A police officer said the incident took place around 12.30 p.m.
“The protestors registered online to get QR codes to enter the summit venue. They wore sweaters and jackets above T-shirts with objectionable content printed on them. They removed the jackets near the lobby of Hall No 5 and held a protest there,” the officer said.
A Delhi Police personnel on duty said they are going to heighten security inside the halls after the “unfortunate episode”.
The protest, which lasted a few minutes before the group was bundled out of the hall, caught the guests and other visitors by surprise, many of whom watched the unfolding scenes in disbelief, given the significance of the AI Summit that India is hosting.
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The AI Impact Summit is being held from February 16-20 at Bharat Mandapam, in which several heads of state, global AI leaders, academicians and researchers, heads of global tech giants and philanthropists are taking part.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the AI Impact Summit 2026 here on Thursday in the presence of several world leaders and heads of global tech giants.
After being whisked away from the hall, the protesters marched towards the lobby, stood against a massive backdrop mounted there and shouted slogans against the government.
A student from Ludhiana who visited the Impact Arena at the summit on Friday said that when general visitors register through the summit website, a QR code comes in their email, which carries the name and identity of their organisation or institution. This QR code is used to enter the Bharat Mandapam premises, he said.
Published – February 20, 2026 02:40 pm IST