NEW DELHI — The wife of Indian social activist Sonam Wangchuk turned to the courts on Sunday, seeking permission to have her husband transferred from a government hospital to a private one, calling his current situation “illegal detention.”
Gitanjali Angmo shared her concerns on social media platform X, writing that despite multiple requests, hospital officials had refused to discharge Wangchuk or allow the family to move him to a facility of their choosing. This came one day after security personnel transported Wangchuk to the state-run Safdarjung Hospital against his expressed wishes.
The hospital released a statement Sunday saying Wangchuk’s vital signs were stable, though his blood work remained “marginally altered.” Officials said he needed ongoing medical care and continuous monitoring. Attempts to reach the hospital and its director’s office by phone went unanswered.
Wangchuk, 59, began fasting on June 28 in a show of solidarity with India’s Cockroach Janta Party, a youth-led political movement demanding that federal Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resign following exam paper leaks in May that impacted millions of students across the country.
The movement has grown into an uncommon public challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and has attracted widespread support throughout India.
Earlier in the week, Wangchuk had informed government doctors that he did not want to be hospitalized. By Saturday, hospital authorities reported that he was declining medical treatment.
Angmo described a heavily restricted environment at the hospital. “With around 30 police personnel stationed on our floor and well over 100 across the hospital, our movement is severely restricted,” she wrote Sunday.
The Delhi Police, which operates under India’s federal home ministry, did not respond to requests for comment made by phone and email.
On Thursday, the Delhi High Court directed authorities to closely monitor Wangchuk’s health and step in if his condition worsened. That order came in response to a petition asking officials to force-feed him as his health continued to decline.
The Cockroach Janta Party has announced plans to march to Parliament on Monday — the opening day of its latest session — to push forward its demands.
