NEW DELHI: Activist Sonam Wangchuk said he would end his indefinite hunger strike on July 20 if the Centre takes responsibility for alleged failures in the education system, or if political leaders assure him that the issues will be raised in Parliament.In a message posted on X from Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital, where he has been admitted after being shifted from the Jantar Mantar protest site, Wangchuk listed three conditions under which he would call off his fast.He described the hospital stay as an “illegal detention”.” I will end my fast on 20th July if: a. If the govt takes accountability of the recent failures in Education system, Paper leaks etc or b. If I and the leadership of CJP reach the doorsteps of Parliament where MPs and leaders of various parties assure us that they will now take up the issue in the Parliament or c. If my health or other factors do not permit this then the MPs and leaders of different parties visit this Hospital and give give the the above assurance ...From the illegal detentions at Safdarjung Hospital, where my freedom of movement, speech and communication are restricted.” Wangchuk wrote.He signed off the post by saying it was sent “from the illegal detentions at Safdarjung Hospital, where my freedom of movement, speech and communication are restricted.The statement comes a day after Wangchuk issued another message from the hospital, calling the proposed July 20 march to Parliament India’s “second freedom movement” and urging supporters to make the mobilisation a success.In that appeal, he linked “freedom from injustice” to alleged examination paper leaks and “freedom from fear” to what he described as his illegal detention.Amid the CJP’s proposed “Chalo Sansad” march to Parliament on Sunday, a large number of police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed outside Jantar Mantar in Delhi, with security tightened in the area.Wangchuk has been on an indefinite hunger strike since June 28 after joining the CJP’s agitation over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations.The protest has centred on demands for accountability over paper leaks, reforms in the examination system and the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.On Saturday, he was shifted to Safdarjung Hospital after his health deteriorated following weeks of fasting.The Delhi high court subsequently declined to interfere with the Centre’s decision to hospitalise him, observing that the move was not arbitrary given his medical condition and noting that doctors were monitoring his health.
