New Delhi, 18 July (H.S.): The Congress on Saturday accused the government of adopting a “dictatorial approach” after environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk was admitted to Safdarjung Hospital by Delhi Police. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal described the action as a blot on democracy and the Constitution.

In a post on social media platform X, Kharge said that the government had not spared anyone who raised their voice, whether it was Professor G.D. Agarwal, who had undertaken an indefinite hunger strike to protect the Ganga, women wrestlers from Haryana, farmers, Dalits, tribal communities, or students affected by examination paper leaks.

Kharge alleged that, in the government’s view, anyone who questioned it was labelled a “traitor” or a “parasite”. He said that the developments at Jantar Mantar represented another dark mark on democracy and the Constitution. Kharge also claimed that the “students’ voice”, which began in Kota and Dehradun, would now reach Delhi.

Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said the government should have removed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan instead of removing Sonam Wangchuk from his protest site. He alleged that the government should have shown compassion and humanity but instead used what he described as “fascist methods” to suppress a peaceful protest.

Venugopal termed the action highly condemnable and said that people would respond to it. He also demanded that Dharmendra Pradhan be removed from his position before the commencement of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

It may be noted that Delhi Police admitted Sonam Wangchuk to Safdarjung Hospital on Saturday morning after he had been sitting on a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar for the past 20 days. Police stated that the decision was taken in view of the Delhi High Court’s directions and his continuously deteriorating health condition.

During the action, workers of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protested against the move, which led to a confrontation with police personnel.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar