‘I wanted Rahul Gandhi to end my hunger strike’, Sonam Wangchuk says 20 July Parliament march had a different plan
Sonam Wangchuk revealed that he wanted Rahul Gandhi to end his hunger strike during the planned July 20 Parliament march and shared details of the original protest strategy.
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Prominent environmental activist Sonam Wangchuk, who went on a 36-day hunger strike over the ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ protest against the NEET paper leak and the planned Parliament march on July 20, has made a significant statement about the protest. Wangchuk said he wanted to end his hunger strike in a dignified manner and had hoped that Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi would offer him juice and bring the fast to an end. He also revealed details of the original plan for the July 20 Parliament march.
This was the full plan for the July 20 Parliament march
Sonam Wangchuk said he had told the protesters that he could continue his hunger strike for another 12 days. After that, the plan was to march to Parliament on July 20 and submit a memorandum to the MPs. Organisers had estimated that around 10,000 to 15,000 people would participate in the march, but according to Wangchuk, more than one lakh people eventually joined the protest. He clarified that the movement was never intended to involve vandalism or any form of violence.
‘Leader of Opposition should end the fast and take the movement forward’
Wangchuk said that if there was no positive response from the government, the protesters planned to meet opposition MPs. Congress leader Pawan Khera had also reached the stage during the protest. The strategy was to reach Parliament, hand over the entire matter to the MPs and ask them to raise the issue in Parliament and work towards a solution.
As part of this plan, Wangchuk said they wanted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to come and end his hunger strike before taking responsibility for the next phase of the movement. However, he alleged that the administration forcibly removed him from the site on July 18 itself.
Abhijeet Deepke alleges, ‘Sonam Wangchuk was kidnapped’
Meanwhile, Abhijeet Deepke, who was associated with the movement, also made allegations during an interview. He said Wangchuk was the main face of the entire protest and that everyone was concerned about his rapidly deteriorating health, although he was unwilling to withdraw from the movement.
Deepke alleged that Wangchuk was later forcibly taken away and kept at a location where only government representatives were allowed to meet him. According to him, his fellow protesters were not permitted to meet him, which eventually resulted in Wangchuk having to end his hunger strike in the presence of government officials.