Police action on Wangchuk: Congress says govt crushing peaceful protest
Party accuses Centre of treating dissent as law-and-order problem after activist is shifted to hospital; CJP calls for nationwide stir
The Congress on Saturday, 18 July strongly criticised the police action at Jantar Mantar after activist Sonam Wangchuk was shifted to Safdarjung Hospital and his indefinite hunger strike broken, alleging that the BJP-led Centre viewed peaceful protests as a law-and-order problem rather than a democratic right.
Congress media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the Constitution guaranteed the right to dissent, but accused the Union home ministry of seeking to suppress it.
"The Delhi Police reports 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: political obedience takes precedence over Constitutional duty," Khera said.
Accusing the government of repeatedly violating democratic norms, he alleged, "From dragging away women wrestlers to manhandling ex-servicemen, this government has repeatedly demonstrated its contempt for the Constitution."
"Today's actions lay bare this government's mindset: peaceful protest is not a fundamental democratic right to be protected, but a law-and-order problem to be crushed," Khera said. "It is a shame that the world's largest democracy is being 'ruled' by the most undemocratic and anti-democratic political party in the world."
His remarks came hours after Wangchuk was shifted to Safdarjung Hospital after his health deteriorated on the 21st day of his indefinite hunger strike at the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest site in New Delhi's Jantar Mantar, demanding the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over repeated examination irregularities.
Delhi Police said the activist was moved on the advice of medical experts and in compliance with directions issued by the Delhi High Court, which has been monitoring his health. Deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) Sachin Sharma said Wangchuk was receiving the required medical intervention after his condition worsened.
In a statement, the police said Wangchuk had been shifted for "essential medical care" and that some protesters attempted to obstruct the exercise, resulting in a brief commotion. "The protestors tried to create obstruction, in which slight commotion ensued. However, police exercised maximum restraint and carried out the exercise safely," the statement said. The police also appealed to protesters to peacefully vacate the protest site.
Meanwhile, CJP founder Abhijit Dipke alleged that the protesters had been subjected to a police crackdown. "I have been beaten up and put under detention by Delhi Police," Dipke claimed in a post on X.
He later alleged that he had been assaulted and briefly detained after going to a friend's house to freshen up, and called for nationwide protests against the police action.
The CJP also shared a video on X purportedly showing Wangchuk being carried away wrapped in a white sheet. "A frail old man, after 20 days of a hunger strike, was picked up, wrapped in white sheets and taken away by Delhi Police. This is a national shame," the party said.
Wangchuk and three activists of the All India Students' Association (AISA) have been on an indefinite hunger strike since 28 June in support of the CJP-led protest demanding action over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination and the reported deaths of students linked to the controversy.
The health of all four hunger strikers has steadily deteriorated over the past three weeks.
With PTI inputs