- Sonam Wangchuk cited severe health damage, including muscle loss, after prolonged fasting
- He denied political deal rumors linked to breaking his fast with Union ministers
- CJP-led protest continues with calls for deeper reforms beyond legal steps and fast-track courts
Activist Sonam Wangchuk has shared a video message on Instagram addressed to both his supporters and critics after he ended his 26-day fast in support of the protest led by the satirical political group, Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).
He threw a counter-question after some people asked why he ended his fast, a grueling ordeal for the activist from Ladakh who went from the open space in central Delhi's Jantar Mantar to the fluorescent-lit corridors of a government hospital.
"After 26 days of hunger, do I need to prove my sincerity?" Wangchuk said, and asked people to watch the full 22-minute-long video on his YouTube channel.
In the video recorded from his hospital bed, Wangchuk, noticeably frail, shared the consequences of his long fast and also commented on the backlash.
"Friends, I am making this video with a bit of sadness, a bit of surprise, and a mixture of grief and anger," he said. "Physically fighting, quarreling, carrying out another strike within a strike, lying down on the ground - using whatever strength I had left in me on the 20th or 22nd day, I had to forcefully push my way out," Wangchuk said.
He said the effect on his body has been catastrophic. "Muscles are gone, and irreversible damage to my organs and brain has reached almost the verge of happening," the activist said, adding he lost 11 kg during this period.
On Thursday night, Union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh were present as Wangchuk took his first sips of liquid nourishment after weeks.
"Since this morning, many people have been calling me or showing me posts, saying that many questions are being raised against you. Why did you break your fast only through them, through Union Ministers? Why didn't you break it through someone else? What deal has happened, what bargain has happened?" Wangchuk said.
"Will I now have to get a character certificate from anyone regarding how pure my fast was?" he shot back. The activist rubbished insinuation of a backdoor political bargaining, and pointed out what he called the sheer absurdity of enduring nearly a month of starvation just to strike a deal with the government.
"If a bargain had to be made, if a deal had to be made, would someone have to stay hungry for 26 days? You must have seen how many others have made deals - do they make deals like this? Could I not have sat in a luxurious air-conditioned room to strike a deal or bargain, rather than having to make a deal by sitting outside on the roadside in Delhi's heat?"
Wangchuk also thanked the thousands of supporters who stood by him.
Though he has ended his fast, CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka told NDTV at their protest site in central Delhi's Jantar Mantar on Friday that nothing less than the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will be acceptable. The comments came despite negotiations and the government's announcements of taking steps on several fronts to stop paper leaks.
Ranka expressed support for Wangchuk's decision.
"His health had been deteriorating quite a bit for the last four-five days. We had been continuously requesting him to actually end his hunger strike. He continued his strike till he got some submissions and some negotiations done with the government, which is absolutely great. His negotiations were on his hunger strike, and we really are happy that his hunger strike has ended and our fight, this protest, continues. I think there's absolutely no contradiction in these two things," Ranka said.
The Centre has taken decisions for legal reforms and also approved fast-track courts to try paper leak cases. Ranka said the measures are welcome but they don't address the root cause of the crisis.
