On 26th July (local time), self-proclaimed climate activist and farmers’ protest ‘toolkit’ fame Greta Thunberg extended support to the Cockroach Janta Party-led (CJP) protest at an event organised by the UK chapter of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) in London.
While addressing the gathering, Thunberg said the Indian student protests had made people across the world “proud”. She added that the protests had demonstrated what could be achieved when people came together and resisted.
SFI-UK’s victory gathering is in full swing at Trafalgar Square! We send our salutes to @GretaThunberg, who showed up in solidarity with the Indian student movement at the London protest today. The student movement has given global activists hope about the power of the people ✊ pic.twitter.com/nvtsYqEI2R
— Students' Federation of India – United Kingdom (@sfi_uk) July 26, 2026
“They show the true meaning of people power. The Indian students’ struggle for justice and the broader struggle for democracy and liberation is also our struggle,” she said. Thunberg called upon supporters to “rise up in solidarity with India”.
The weekend gathering was described by SFI UK as a celebration of the movement’s “victory”. The organisation hailed the agitation for pushing Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign. It also claimed that 21 students had lost their lives over the handling of NEET and accused the police of “brutal repression” against the protesters. Notably, there was no mention of stone-pelting, heckling and attacks on police and RPF personnel by the goons posing as student protesters.
SFI-UK extends its congratulations for the victory in securing the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. We applaud students who stood in solidarity at Trafalgar Square today, and in cities across the UK since the movement began. The fight for free and fair education has no borders. pic.twitter.com/IZtQfwPlXS
— Students' Federation of India – United Kingdom (@sfi_uk) July 26, 2026
In an earlier statement, SFI had stated the “fight will continue” hinting towards more such protests in the future.
Press Release (25/07/2026): We fought, we won. The struggle will continue beyond Pradhan’s resignation. pic.twitter.com/jaQ3fujhtV
— SFI (@SFI_CEC) July 25, 2026
The event came after the CJP called off its 36-day agitation on Saturday. The outfit said the Centre had accepted its remaining demands, including compensation for the families of students whom it claimed had died by suicide following the NEET paper leak and the withdrawal of FIRs filed against protesters.
The London event was not SFI UK’s first intervention in the agitation. OpIndia had earlier reported that its committees had mobilised supporters through pre-announced demonstrations in London, Leeds and Edinburgh. The organisation fixed venues and timings, circulated posters and coordinated the protests through its network. However, some media houses, including The Wire, attempted to portray the London gathering as a spontaneous reaction by the Indian diaspora.
Thunberg had earlier entered an Indian political controversy during the 2021 farmers’ protests after sharing an online “toolkit” intended to coordinate international support for the agitation. Delhi Police subsequently registered a case against the creators of the document, though Thunberg was not named in the FIR.
