Indian activist on hunger strike for 20 days forcibly taken to hospital

Indian activist and educationist Sonam Wangchuk, on hunger strike for the past 20 days in Delhi, has been forcibly removed from his protest site.

The 59-year-old had been protesting in support of an online satirical movement called the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) who are seeking educational reforms. The protesters had planned a march to India's parliament on Monday.

Wangchuk was sitting on hunger strike in the scorching summer, consuming nothing but salt and water. He had lost more than 9kg and was in a lot of pain.

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke has now begun an indefinite fast in his place. He says the march to parliament will go on and has called for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to resign.

Dipke told the BBC he had gone to a friend's house in the morning to freshen up when policemen turned up and refused to let him leave.

Videos from the protest site on Saturday showed chaos erupting just before 07:30 local time (02:00 GMT) when dozens of police and paramilitary personnel swooped in on the stage where the activist was lying down. Protesters who tried to stop them were pushed away.

They covered him with curtains of bedsheets before removing him from the stage. Minutes later, an ambulance was seen speeding away.

The activist's wife Gitanjali Angmo later posted on X that she was "at Safdarjung hospital where he has been admitted".

"Nothing should be administered to him orally or intravenous[ly] without taking consent from me, his family and his doctors who have been monitoring his health for the past 20 days," she wrote.

The hospital said doctors were examining him and "an official press note will be issued shortly".

A top police official told reporters that Wangchuk had been moved "in compliance with [a court] order, and based on health conditions and medical advice".

"Sonam Wangchuk has been moved to a government hospital for much-needed medical intervention and is currently under medical supervision," said Sachin Sharma, Deputy Commissioner of Police.

He was referring to a Delhi High Court order from Thursday asking the federal government to monitor Wangchuk's health regularly and provide necessary treatment if needed.

Wangchuk had refused to end his indefinite hunger strike despite growing calls for him to do so. Despite his frail health, he had been insisting that he would participate in Monday's march to the parliament.

"I've grown weak from the outside but I'm strong from within," Wangchuk told the crowd gathered at the protest venue, Jantar Mantar, a 300-year-old observatory, a couple of days back. His statement was met with cheers and applause.

"Together, we will march peacefully to the parliament and put forward our petitions at the altar of democracy," he said.

The activist then joked that if he died before the march, his "ghost would join the march".

It's unlikely that the activist will now be able to participate, but Dipke has said that Monday's march will happen as planned.

"If they think that taking Wangchuk away will end this movement, they are mistaken. We will remain here, and will march to parliament on 20 July," he said.

• Why Indians still turn to the hunger strike

The CJP began in May as an online satirical movement to protest against paper leaks and other irregularities in India's top exams and has gained a massive following on social media.

The protesters, who call themselves cockroaches, have been protesting for a month now. Members of some student organisations have also joined Wangchuk in his fast.

The protesters are demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan after a key entrance exam for aspiring doctors was cancelled in early May following a paper leak. They say the minister must take moral responsibility and quit.

Pradhan has dismissed the CJP and its supporters as "the B-team of disruptive elements". And Modi's government has not engaged with the protesters yet.

Following Saturday's action, CJP also demanded Modi's resignation. "Until now, we were demanding Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, but after this despicable act, we will now demand the resignation of Narendra Modi," Dipke said.

MPs from several opposition parties condemned the action against Wangchuk, describing it as "shocking coercive state violence" and "an assault on democracy".

In recent days, there was growing pressure from the opposition and civil society leaders for the government to engage with the protesters.

On Thursday, former Delhi chief minister and leader of the Aam Aadmi Party Arvind Kejriwal visited Wangchuk.

In a video shared by CJP, Kejriwal is seen greeting the activist with folded hands before shaking his hand. He appealed to the government to engage with the protesters.

"Every year, exam papers get leaked and youth pay the price," he said. "I appeal to the government to listen to students and Wangchuk."

He added that "Pradhan should be removed from his post and replaced by Wangchuk".