Activist Sonam Wangchuk on Wednesday told the government that he would end his 25-day hunger strike once the government assures him that young protesters who took part in the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) march to Parliament will not face any punitive or retaliatory legal action.
Event Context
“Their only ‘offence’ has been to raise their voice for a fair and accountable education system,” Wangchuk said in his letter to union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh, urging the government not to initiate criminal proceedings against the protesters.
Wangchuk said he would end his fast if the assurance was given.
In a post on X later, Wangchuk added that he would ask students to pause the movement. “Once the assurance from govt come I will also appeal to the peacefully protesting students to halt the movement for now and enter into dialogue with the government,” he said in a post on X.
Nadda and Jitendra Singh met Wangchuk at Medanta on Tuesday night. They spoke for close to 45 minutes, with Wangchuk conveying that he needed to look after the students’ protest before agreeing to any withdrawal.
The letter follows six FIRs filed over alleged violence during the July 20 “Sansad Chalo” march to Parliament. On a petition seeking action against the police over the use of excessive force to disperse the students, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notices to Delhi Police.
Apart from the CJP, a group of Opposition MPs also appealed to Wangchuk to end his fast and pledged to carry his cause in Parliament.
Calling him a “Gandhian, Engineer, Innovator, Education Reformer, and Environmental Activist,” the letter by Opposition MPs said his advocacy for a fair and accountable examination system had “touched the hearts of millions across the nation,” and that the country needed his “wisdom and guidance far more than” his sacrifice.
The MPs, including Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal, M N Haque of the TMC, Mamata Thakor and Dimple Yadav, said that they would take forward the “national mission and debate on educational reforms” in Parliament, and made it clear that ending the fast would not mean the protest itself winds down.
“We fully support the continuation of the protest till such time that the objectives are achieved,” the letter by the MPs said, adding that they would also demand that the government should not take coercive action against Wangchuk or the other protesters.
The CJP has listed Pradhan’s resignation, compensation of ₹1 crore to the families of students who allegedly died by suicide following the NEET paper leak controversy, and withdrawal of all FIRs lodged against peaceful protesters as the three conditions for the collective to end their protest at Jantar Mantar.
Team Analysis
The CJP has said it was ready to hold talks with the government to resolve the ongoing agitation, but insisted that the discussions should take place at a neutral venue instead of a minister’s residence, and that the government’s intention should be to genuinely address the protesters’ demands.
CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said the movement did not have time for “meaningless discussions”. “It is important that the government’s intention is to accept our demands. Time is precious… Thousands of people are still at Jantar Mantar and the protest is continuing,” he said.
Match Outlook
“In the absence of such an assurance, I will be forced to continue my fast indefinitely. I also hope that there will be no further use of excessive police force to repress the movement,” he said in the letter.
Wangchuk has been on an indefinite fast since June 28 at Jantar Mantar, where the CJP has been protesting over the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and demanding union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.
He was shifted by Delhi Police to Safdarjung Hospital on July 18 and was moved to Gurugram’s Medanta hospital following a Delhi High Court order, and continues his fast through the hospitalisation.
