Delhi Police removed climate activist Sonam Wangchuk from his 21-day hunger strike at Jantar Mantar and admitted him to Safdarjung Hospital.
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi condemned the action, accusing the Modi government of using force to suppress student-related issues.
Opposition leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Arvind Kejriwal, and Akhilesh Yadav slammed the crackdown as tyrannical and demanded judicial oversight.
Several polticians have critisied theDelhi Police's move to detained Sonam Wangchuk on Saturday. Officers shifted the activist from his Jantar Mantar protest site to Safdarjung Hospital, AP reported. Wangchuk had completed 21 days of a hunger strike backing students who opposed alleged competitive exam leaks, including the NEET scandal. The action came just a day after a new Delhi Police Commissioner took charge, sparking questions over its timing.
Opposition Slams Crackdown
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi criticised the move on social media. "The core tenets of the Modi government are Asatya and Hinsa. The removal of Sonam Wangchuk ji from Jantar Mantar while he was on a non-violent hunger strike is wrong. Paper leaks, the rising cost of education, and student suicides are critical issues for India’s future. No amount of force can deter India’s students, and those of us who love and believe in them, from raising these issues." Rahul posted on X.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP-led government of suppressing dissent. "..this tyrannical government has spared no one. In their eyes, anyone who raises their voice is an ‘ Anti-National ,’ a ‘parasite’!" Kharge said.
Congress leader Pawan Khera described the action as an attack on democratic rights and questioned the role of the newly appointed police chief. "It is a shame that the world’s largest democracy is being ‘ruled’ by the most undemocratic and anti-democratic political party of the world...The Delhi Police report directly to the Home Ministry—the very Ministry that appointed a new Police Commissioner in Delhi just yesterday. If today’s crackdown is his first brief, it sends a chilling message." Khera said.
Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal criticised the lack of engagement, calling the government's actions "arrogant". "Instead of forcibly lifting them up, the Modi government should have talked to Sonam Wangchuk. Instead of crushing the movement, reform the country’s education and examination system." Kejriwal wrote on X.
Trinamool Congress lawmaker Mahua Moitra termed the incident a "kidnapping", alleging that the government was attempting to derail a planned mobilisation on July 20. TMC chief Mamata Banerjee expressed concern over Wangchuk’s health and called for dialogue, saying public trust is earned through "transparency, accountability, and respect for democratic rights".
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav demanded that the identities of the police officers involved in the operation be disclosed and sought judicial oversight of Wangchuk’s treatment. "The identities of those who sneaked in suddenly under deceptive plainclothes to carry out this action must be made public. This is our firm demand that Wangchuk ji’s medical care be conducted under ‘judicial oversight’." Yadav said.
BJP Defends Action
The BJP justified the police intervention. Party leaders argued that authorities acted solely to protect the activist's physical well-being following a judicial directive. "Regarding Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike, HC had directed that his health be taken care of...to monitor his health he’s been admitted to the hospital." BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain said.
Wangchuk's health had worsened. Delhi BJP president and Union minister of state Harsh Malhotra said this prompted the hospital transfer. Malhotra added that later developments showed the protest was political.
Veteran activist Anna Hazare urged the Union government to engage with Wangchuk. "The government should not test his limits. Say yes or no (to his demands) but what is wrong in holding discussions." Hazare said in a video message.
Hazare’s hunger strike in Delhi for the Lokpal Act previously rocked the UPA government in 2011.
Parliament March Blocked
Delhi Police announced they would block the 'Sansad Chalo' march to Parliament scheduled for Monday morning. They described the ongoing hunger strike at Jantar Mantar as an illegal protest for which no fresh permission had been sought.
Senior police officers said the march would be stopped on the grounds that it would disrupt law and order in a high-security zone, endanger public safety and choke traffic in central Delhi. Detentions, they said, would follow if a large gathering pushed toward Parliament.
"CJP spokesperson Abhijeet Dipke has never informed us or applied for a permission for the Sansad Chalo march. It’s a completely illegal protest because they only had permission for one day. We even made them sign undertakings. Now, they have extended it without any permission. Also, for the march, we only approached them but they have not even applied for a permission." an anonymous senior police officer said, AP reported.
Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) spokesperson Vaishnavi Gaur contested the police claim. "We had intimated them about the march way back. They know very well about the march and our plans. In any case, they won’t allow us," Gaur said. She added that the intimation was done in person and not in writing.
