Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- Both houses of the Indian parliament were adjourned sine die on Thursday
- A political stalemate between Prime Minsiter Narendra Modi’s governement and the opposition showed no signs of abating during the 19-day long proceedings
- Lawmakers from ruling coalition and the opposition staged demonstrations on the final day of the session, drawing a session overshadowed by protests to close.
Here are the latest developments from India on Thursday, August 13:
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Skip next section Karnataka Bandh calls shutdown over Tamil Nadu Cauvery dispute08/13/2026August 13, 2026
Karnataka Bandh calls shutdown over Tamil Nadu Cauvery dispute
A statewide shutdown was called in the southern Indian state of Karnataka over the Cauvery river watersharing issue with Tamil Nadu.
Thursday’s agitation came in opposition to the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee directing Karnataka to release 12,000 cusecs of Cauvery river’s water to the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu for 15 days.
Protesters have called on the Karnataka government to not release the water saying the state itself is facing water shortages, particularly for drinking and irrigation requirements.
The dispute over sharing the water of the 765-kilometer (475-mile) long river, which resurfaces during rainfall deficit years, dates back a century and has also witnessed bloodshed in the past.
On Thursday, security measures were tightened in several places in the state, including in Mandya, one of the districts associated with the longstanding issue.
According to news agency PTI, the shutdown was met with a mixed response with protests in Mandya and preventive detentions at various locations. However, urban areas like Bengaluru and Mysuru remained unaffected after organizations that had earlier backed the shutdown, pulled away their support.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Ik0ASkip next section Protests mark monsoon session of parliament 08/13/2026August 13, 2026
Protests mark monsoon session of parliament
On the very first day of the monsoon session on July 20, parliament was rocked by a massive youth-led march trying to get to its gates as part of the Cockroach Janta Party movement demanding the resignation of the now former education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over exam irregularities.
The protesters were met with baton-charges and tear gas firing, and since then the opposition has railed against the violent crackdown, demanding an answer in the parliament from Union Home Minister Amit Shah over alleged police brutality.
On Wednesday, Shah said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government was ready for a discussion on the student protests which were triggered by a slew of medical entrance exam paper leaks. The leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, Congress’s Rahul Gandhi, turned down the debate offer saying that the youth wanted answers on who ordered the use of force on protesters and “not a lecture” from Shah.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Union Minister of Parliamentarty Affairs Kiren Rijiju accused the opposition of “running away from discussions” and alleged that opposition disruptions affected parliament’s productivity.
During the 19-day monsoon session several demonstrations were held by the Congress-led alliance of opposition parties called the INDIA bloc on the parliament premises against the police action and a donation embezzlement controversy linked to the Ram Temple, a shrine central to Modi’s Hindu-first politics.
Lawmakers from Modi’s ruling coalition also began staging their own demonstrations, including on the last day over another student protest in Jharkhand — where the Congress party is an ally of the ruling coalition. Tear gas, batons and water cannons were also used to disperse the protesters marching towards the state assembly in Ranchi.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IjwsSkip next section Political deadlock rife as parliament’s monsoon session ends08/13/2026August 13, 2026
Political deadlock rife as parliament’s monsoon session ends
India’s parliament convened on Thursday for the final day of its monsoon session amid an unrelenting political standoff between the government and the opposition.
Both houses of the parliament, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, were adjourned sine die shortly after they commenced for the last day of the session.
The country’s supreme legislative body struggled to get its business done this season with parliament being turned into a demonstration ground by lawmakers over last month’s massive Cockroach protests and the ongoing student protest in the state of Jharkhand.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IjNmSkip next section Welcome to our coverage08/13/2026August 13, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Dharvi Vaid Dhulia | Rob Turner Editor
This is Dharvi from DW’s studio in New Delhi. We are back with the Thursday edition of the India blog, where we break down all the biggest headlines that are creating a buzz in the world’s most populous nation.
First up, it is the final day of the monsoon session of the Indian parliament, which has had quite a stormy spell so far. The parliament’s second regular session of the year was overcast by a massive youth-led protest, the consequent resignation of the country’s education minister and a near-daily political deadlock, marked by demonstrations and counter-demonstrations by the bloc of opposition parties and the ruling coalition.
In other news. the southern Indian state of Karnataka is witnessing a day-long shutdown over the longstanding Cauvery river watersharing dispute with the neighboring Tamil Nadu state.
Stay tuned as we bring you all this and more.
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