Actor Shreya Dhanwanthary has lent her voice in support of educator and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is currently on an indefinite hunger strike at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. While expressing admiration for his peaceful form of rebellion, the actor also urged him to consider ending his fast.
Shreya has a request for Sonam Wangchuk
On Tuesday, Shreya took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share her views and extend support to educator and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is on an indefinite hunger strike at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
Shreya shared her views while reposting a tweet by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, which read, “Day 17 of Sonam Sir’s Hunger-Strike. He has started losing muscle mass and is in immense pain. Like everyone else, I begged him to end his fast. He calmly replied, “Don’t ask me to end my fast. Ask the govt why they won’t even have a dialogue.”
Reacting to the tweet, Shreya requested Sonam Wangchuk to end his fast. She wrote, “I hate that I’m about to say this but please sir, consider ending your fast. Sonam Wangchuk is using a peaceful expression of rebellion against a government that has shown little to no moral conscience. Sir, you cannot reason with an apathetic state.”
Apart from Shreya, actors Omi Vaidya and Zeenat Aman also extended support to Sonam Wangchuk.
Omi Vaidya shared a video on social media, introducing himself as “Chatur from 3 Idiots” before making an emotional appeal. Referring to Aamir Khan’s character from the film, he said, “I don’t want Funsukh Wangdu to die.” He added, “Right now he is on a very long hunger strike. His blood sugar has gone down very much. I don’t know if you’ve heard about this. I don’t know if the media is reporting this. But this is a pretty important thing.” Meanwhile, Zeenat Aman appealed to the Indian government to hold a peaceful dialogue with the activist before it’s too late.
Sonam Wangchuk on hunger strike
Sonam Wangchuk, an engineer, innovator and education reformer from Ladakh, joined the protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on June 28. The protest, led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), began over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination and has now continued for more than 24 days.
The protesters are demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. They have also sought ₹1 crore as compensation for the families of NEET aspirants who allegedly died by suicide after the controversy.
Sonam Wangchuk has been on an indefinite hunger strike since joining the protest. The CJP says his health has been steadily declining. According to a health bulletin released on Monday, he has lost 8.2 kg. His blood pressure was recorded at 107/70, while his blood sugar level dropped to 67. The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has announced a peaceful march to Parliament on July 20, the first day of the Monsoon Session.