New Delhi, 19 July (H.S.): The Delhi High Court on Sunday declined to pass any interim order on the petition filed by Geetanjali Angmo, wife of Ladakh-based social activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar for nearly 20 days. A special bench of Justice Mini Pushkarna directed the Centre to submit a status report regarding Wangchuk’s health condition. The matter will be heard next on July 24.

During the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Geetanjali Angmo, argued that Sonam Wangchuk has the right to receive treatment at a hospital and from doctors of his choice. The court questioned why there was a lack of trust in government doctors. Responding to this, Sibal clarified that he was not questioning the competence of government doctors but only wanted Wangchuk to be allowed access to his preferred hospital and medical professionals.

Sibal further informed the court that police personnel had been deployed around Wangchuk and alleged that his wife and family members were not being allowed to meet him and were being made to wait.

Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma said that the government was bound by its duty to protect a person’s life. He stated that any adverse incident involving Wangchuk could have serious consequences. Sharma pointed out that senior dignitaries, including the President, and other prominent personalities receive treatment at AIIMS and Safdarjung Hospital.

During the proceedings, an AIIMS doctor present in court said that the issue was not about medical capability but about trust. Sibal questioned the presence of a police official, stating that Wangchuk’s blood pressure had increased and asked whether the police personnel was treating the patient. Sharma rejected the claim and said that no police official was present there.

During the hearing, Geetanjali Angmo stated that the family wanted a second medical opinion regarding Wangchuk’s potassium levels but was denied permission. She further claimed that when they requested samples, they were provided only after 12 hours, by which time the laboratories they approached had closed. Responding to this, Chetan Sharma said that the court was a place for legal proceedings and not activism.

Geetanjali Angmo had approached the Delhi High Court seeking immediate release of Sonam Wangchuk from Safdarjung Hospital or his transfer to another hospital. She alleged that Wangchuk was being kept in illegal detention by being separated from his family, lawyers and personal doctors.

The petition claimed that Delhi Police removed Sonam Wangchuk from Jantar Mantar on the morning of July 18 and shifted him to Safdarjung Hospital without his consent. It further alleged that keeping him in the hospital without registration of any criminal case or any order from a court authorising his arrest or preventive detention was unlawful. The plea claimed that he was being confined under the pretext of medical intervention only to remove him from a peaceful protest.

The petition alleged that Delhi Police acted under the cover of a Delhi High Court order, whereas the court had only directed continuous monitoring of Wangchuk’s health condition. It stated that neither Sonam Wangchuk nor Geetanjali Angmo had been made parties in the earlier petition before the High Court, raising questions over how he could be kept in hospital custody without his consent.

Sonam Wangchuk had been on a continuous hunger strike since June 28. The protest was organised demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan following alleged question paper leaks in NEET and other examinations. Even after Wangchuk was removed from Jantar Mantar on July 18, the protest continued, with student organisation leaders beginning a hunger strike at the site, including former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union president Aishe Ghosh.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar