The CJP protest that started at Delhi's Jantar Mantar over the NEET paper leak spread across cities across the country. The protest ended following the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan, who was the education minister. On Saturday, Pralhad Joshi took charge as the new education minister.
Amid the uproar last week, Mumbai too witnessed several protests, with students and influencers gathering at Shivaji Park over the paper leak. While Mumbai Police did not resort to a lathi charge, they detained several protesters.
However, amid this, comedian Raunaq Rajani has accused Mumbai Police of using excessive force during the Shivaji Park protest, alleging that his wife suffered a fractured rib after she was pushed and kicked by a policeman while they were being detained.
On July 26, the comedian shared a video on social media, claiming it captures the moments leading up to the alleged assault and the incident inside the police vehicle. Rajani claimed that on July 22, he and his wife had joined a protest at Mumbai's Shivaji Park when policemen began allegedly illegally rounding up protesters. During the commotion that followed, his wife was shoved and kicked, resulting in a fractured rib.
"My wife's rib has been fractured because of the protests in Mumbai. It was fractured by a policeman," Rajani said in his Instagram video shared on July 26.
"On July 22, 2026, my wife and I were detained by the cops while they were allegedly illegally rounding up people at the Shivaji Park protest. You might have seen pictures of both of us in the cop van. They shoved us in with brute force. I ended up having a sprain in my neck. She ended up having pain in her ribs," the comedian revealed.
He said that people across the country had endured much worse in terms of police brutality, which is part of the reason why they did not want to make a big deal of their injuries.
However, when his wife's pain did not subside even after two days, they consulted a doctor and learned that she had fractured her rib.
According to him, things escalated when he and his wife noticed a "kid" being detained by the police and tried to intervene.
"Both of us were telling the cops that they do not have the right to do so," he said, sharing a clip in which people can be heard shouting, "Chhodo isko! Chhodo isko!" (Leave him! Leave him!)
This was followed by a video showing a policeman in a khaki uniform pinning Rajani to the ground. Rajani said that the same policeman later assaulted his wife inside the police vehicle where protesters were being detained.
"This was supposed to be done by a lady cop. He is using his entire body to shove her in," Rajani said, while sharing video footage. He also claimed that a woman police officer tried, in vain, to stop his wife from being shoved into the police vehicle.
"As you probably heard, a lady cop even said, 'Madam ko nikalo,' but this man in red clothes came back and now see how he shoves my wife," he explained in the video.
Footage captures alleged assault
Rajani also shared video footage that he claims shows another policeman assaulting his wife. Footage from inside the police vehicle appears to show the khaki-clad policeman, who had earlier pinned Rajani to the ground, kicking his wife.
"Now, the same cop who pinned me to the ground, the one in khaki, enters. Now show this exact thing from inside the bus and then you will see how the man in khaki kicked my wife on the rib," he alleged.
The comedian said that he was holding his wife's hand to protect her during the commotion, but the policeman separated them. He replayed the video twice so his Instagram viewers could clearly see the alleged assault.
"This nationwide protest has started only because the government has misused the police machinery and used it to beat up innocent protesters. And when we stood up for that exact cause in Mumbai, the police, instead of pulling back, tried to double down and do the same s*** on us," he said.
"We don't pay our f*****g taxes so the police can beat us up! They are supposed to protect us!"
Rajani said that he and his wife have filed a complaint at Shivaji Park Police Station.
"We are waiting for them to call us back so we can register an FIR," he added.
Mumbai Police had not issued a public response to the allegations at the time of writing.
