Rahul Gandhi released after detention during India education protests

India's opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has been released after being detained outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence during protests over the education system.

The demonstrations continued into Wednesday and were led by the social media-driven Cockroach Janta Party movement. Protesters have demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and wider changes to the examination system.

Gandhi held a sit-in protest on Tuesday. He accused the government of ignoring students' demands and criticised a police crackdown on demonstrations in New Delhi a day earlier.

Pradhan, who has faced pressure over the handling of examination controversies, said late Tuesday that the government remained committed to reform. In a social media post, he said students were owed answers, reforms and accountability, and said the government was committed to delivering them.

The protest in New Delhi turned violent when demonstrators threw stones at security forces. Security forces fired tear gas and used batons. Police said 60 civilians and 118 police personnel were injured.

Protests were also held in Mumbai and Bengaluru, where hundreds of people took part.

On Wednesday, hundreds of protesters remained camped at Delhi's Jantar Mantar protest site as the Cockroach Janta Party said it would continue its campaign. In a social media post, the group said, "Cockroaches are alive," and described Pradhan as incompetent.

The movement has attracted millions of social media followers since its launch in May. The protests follow controversies that have damaged trust in India's testing system, including the leak of a medical entrance examination paper that forced more than two million candidates to retake the test. Another dispute over online marking for examinations taken by nearly two million high school students has also added to public anger.