- Sonam Wangchuk urged peaceful protest amid NEET paper leak demonstrations in Delhi
- Clashes at Jantar Mantar left six police personnel injured during late-night dispersal
- Wangchuk has been on a hunger strike since June 28, and is currently admitted to Medanta hospital
Activist Sonam Wangchuk has penned yet another message from his hospital bed in Gurugram, as miles away at Jantar Mantar, thousands of students continue to press for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak.
"Peace and only peace is my way," the 59-year-old wrote on X on a day his hunger strike entered its 26th day.
He requested the protesting students to stick to peaceful methods of protest and expressed pain over the reports of violence by "antisocial elements" in some places in Delhi.
"While at Jantar Mantar, the protests remain peaceful, I'm pained to learn that elsewhere some antisocial elements are taking advantage of the peaceful protests to provoke violence. No matter what the other side does our response must only be flowers. Please keep this tradition at all costs," he said in his online post.
His remarks came hours after clashes erupted between protesters and security personnel near Jantar Mantar late last night, with the cops using tear gas and lathis to disperse the crowd. At least six personnel were injured in the violence, police said.
Wangchuk started his hunger strike since June 28, weeks after the satirical political outfit Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) began their protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding accountability over paper leaks.
He is now admitted to Medanta in Gurugram, after being shifted from the government-run Safdarjung hospital over a Delhi High Court order.
On Tuesday, Union Ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh visited him at the hospital. Following their visit, Wangchuk said he was ready to end his fast if the government assured him no legal action would be taken against the young protesters. No such assurance has come yet.
The government today made yet another appeal to the protesters, reiterating that they are ready for discussions "any time". However, the protesting groups have rejected any talks at Nadda's office, instating that such talks should happen at Jantar Mantar or a neutral venue.
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