Several Bollywood actors and content creators have shown their support for activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been on a hunger strike for 19 days now. The latest to show support is Sonakshi Sinha and Samay Raina, who have urged the government for a dialogue with the activist.
Samay Raina and Sonakshi Sinha speak in support of Sonam Wangchuk
On Thursday, Samay took to Instagram and shared a photo of Sonam Wangchuk from his hunger strike and wrote, “Hoping and praying that he’s okay and that this ends soon with dialogue :(.”
Sonakshi also took to Instagram and shared a video in which she spoke about Wangchuk’s hunger strike and stated that, while she doesn’t usually share such statements, it has been difficult for her to remain silent anymore. She said, “Sonam Wangchuk, we all know him. We all know what he has done for our country, what his achievements are, and how many awards he has won. Today, he has been on a hunger strike for 18 days. He hasn’t eaten anything. Why is he doing this? He is sitting there for the future of the children, a future that he believes is heading towards destruction. He is fighting for those children who have lost their lives. He is standing up against a system that is not functioning the way it should.”
She added that we all know him, but he doesn’t know us and yet he has not eaten anything for the last 18 days, for the future of the kids of this country, and a lot of people are silently watching. “mujhse toh raha nahi gaya. Ab jo hoga voh hoga, but main chup nahi beth sakti. Yeh aadmi, single-handedly, of course, of course, with the CJP, main aapne desh ke yuva ko badhai dena chahti hoon, unhone sahi cheez ke liye awaz uthayi. Lekin koi sun kyun nahi raha hai? Nobody cares. Koi kuch dialogue nahi khol raha, koi kuch baat nahi kar raha. Koi inki taraf mudke dekh bhi nahi raha hai.”
(I just couldn’t stay silent anymore. Whatever happens now, happens, but I can’t sit quietly. This man, single-handedly, of course, along with the CJP, has taken a stand. I also want to congratulate the youth of our country for raising their voices for the right cause. But why is no one listening? Nobody cares. No one is opening a dialogue, no one is having a conversation. No one is even turning around to look at him.)
She added that she decided to speak because she cares about the nation’s future and is not anti-national. “You are very important to us, you are a gem. I can’t thank you enough for what you are doing for this country. Main aapse nahi kahungi ki aap apna fast tode. Main bus yeh kehna chahti hoon, when is it going to be enough? Jab yeh admi mar jayega tab aap uthenge? Tab kiski responsibility hogi? (won’t ask you to end your fast. I just want to ask: when will it be enough? Will you only wake up after this man dies? And when that happens, who will take responsibility?)” Sonakshi captioned the video, “ab dekha nahi jaa raha…dil nahi mann raha (I can’t bear to watch this anymore… my heart just can’t accept it.). Wangchuk sir, we can’t loose you.”
Prakash Raj, Chinmayi Sripaada, Omi Vaidya, Zeenat Aman, Abhay Deol, Swara Bhasker, Soni Razdan, Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah, Shabana Azmi, and others have been vocal in their support. Some of them have urged the activist to call off his strike, as it is deteriorating his health.
About Sonam Wanchuk’s hunger strike
Sonam Wangchuk joined The Cockroach Janata Party, which has been staging a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi since June 6, calling for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities and paper leaks in the NEET examination.
On June 28, Sonam began an indefinite hunger strike in support of the movement. Having now completed 19 days without food, the activist has reportedly suffered significant weight and muscle loss, raising concerns about his health. Despite this, he has maintained that he will not end his fast until the government agrees to hold an open dialogue with him.