The controversy began on July 23 when Nalsar University of Law students in Hyderabad emailed authorities requesting Chief Justice Surya Kant not preside over their ceremony, gaining support from about 450 of the university's 1,400 students. The students were upset over reports that Kant had dismissed a request for urgent hearings on police brutality during a July 20 parliament march by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), where police used batons, sticks, and teargas against unarmed students demanding education reforms, resulting in pellet gun injuries. Kant later clarified he was misquoted and only asked for proper filing, and the Supreme Court has since begun hearing related cases.