Indian activist Sonam Wangchuk forcibly moved to hospital after 20-day hunger strike

Delhi police forcibly moved activist Sonam Wangchuk to a hospital on Saturday over health concerns after 20 days of his hunger strike to protest against India’s examination system.

Wangchuk, 59, has been fasting since June 28 to demand the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in examinations to study medicine.

A few hundred students have also joined Wangchuk around his stage at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in recent weeks, with other protests also organised by the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) online movement.

“As per the orders of … high court and on expert medical advice due to deteriorating health condition of Sonam Wangchuk, he has been shifted to the hospital for essential medical care,” a deputy commissioner of Delhi police said in a statement.

“While complying with the orders … the protestors tried to create obstruction, in which slight commotion ensued,” the statement added.

“We request the protestors at Jantar Mantar to peacefully vacate the place at the earliest.”

A video from Jantar Mantar showed confusion among a few Wangchuk supporters at the site in the morning as police, carrying white sheets, hurriedly moved him from the stage.

Police also moved some CJP supporters who were staging a sit-in at the venue, asking them to vacate the area. Visuals showed one woman protester being physically lifted by policewomen and carried away.

ANI news agency, in which Reuters has a minority stake, said Wangchuk was conscious, and his vitals were stable in the hospital.

“They dragged Sonam Sir away … a 60-year-old man, who had been on a hunger strike for 20 days and hadn’t eaten a thing, was forcibly dragged away by the Delhi Police. We have no idea where they have taken him,” CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke told reporters.

A New Delhi court ordered government doctors on Thursday to monitor the activist’s health daily.

The “life of any citizen is precious,” the court said after a petition filed by activist lawyer Rakesh Kumar Saini warned that Wangchuk may not survive for long if he does not break his fast.

“Whatever medical intervention is needed to save Sonam Wangchuk’s life should be done,” the Delhi High Court ordered on Thursday.

An engineer by training, Wangchuk is best known for pioneering water conservation projects in the Himalayas.

A few hours before he was picked up by the police, Wangchuk said: “Smaller movements have brought down many governments in India … and here it is about education.”

Wangchuk has been at the centre of CJP’s protests, lying on a mattress in the middle of a stage, as supporters and visitors to the protest site mill about.

Last year, Modi’s government accused Wangchuk of inciting people through what it said were provocative statements during violent protests in Ladakh, to which he belongs.

Wangchuk spent about six months in jail before being released in March this year. He has denied the allegations against him, and said the violent protests were a reflection of the frustration with the federal government.

On the third day of his fast, Wangchuk told Reuters his fast would last six weeks unless he died first.

“But hopefully, we don’t have to go that far,” he had said. “A sensitive government in a democracy listens to the pains of the people, and I hope they will take action.”

Last month, some 2.2 million aspiring medical students sat for a re-examination under tight security after the previous test was scrapped following a paper leak that triggered widespread outrage.

The failure of the hugely competitive exam, along with a separate marking fiasco in high school tests, sparked an outcry and fuelled youth protests.

Several members of opposition parties have voiced their support for Wangchuk and the student activists. ...