Activist Sonam Wangchuk Alleges Prison-Like Treatment at Delhi Hospitals
Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk has alleged that he was treated 'like a prisoner' after being taken to state-run Safdarjung Hospital on July 18 and later to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram. The 59-year-old Ladakhi activist, who began an indefinite hunger strike on June 28 at Delhi's Jantar Mantar in support of the satirical political group Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), was moved by police citing medical advice and directions from the Delhi High Court.
In a YouTube video posted late Friday night, Wangchuk described his experience: 'It wasn't just a hospital; it was a cantonment, it was a prison. I was kept in a way that perhaps even a prisoner wouldn't be kept.' He claimed he was not allowed to step out of his room, use a mobile phone or laptop, or meet visitors. Only three relatives were permitted to stay.
Wangchuk said he would write notes on paper napkins for supporters, but 'even those were sometimes confiscated.' He compared the atmosphere to 'being in North Korea.'
His wife, Gitanjali Angmo, posted on X that police were stationed at the main gate, reception, lifts, and outside his ICU room. 'If the Court has clarified that he is not under detention, then under what authority is this happening?' she wrote.
The Delhi High Court had permitted Wangchuk to shift to Medanta, but he alleged he was prevented from leaving Safdarjung for several hours. At Medanta, he claimed five to ten police personnel were stationed outside his room, with 'two to three hundred personnel' downstairs, turning the hospital into a 'military camp.'
Wangchuk's hunger strike was in solidarity with CJP members demanding accountability over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, reforms in the education system, and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. He broke his fast shortly after midnight on Thursday after the central government gave a written assurance not to register cases against protesters who took part in the CJP's 'Sansad Chalo' march, and to hold a parliamentary discussion on examination reforms and paper leaks.
The government has maintained that the police action was in compliance with court orders and medical advice. No official comment has been made on Wangchuk's specific allegations.
