Sonam Wangchuk’s wife alleges ‘illegal detention’ at Safdarjung Hospital

Activist Sonam Wangchuk's wife, Gitanjali J. Angmo, alleged he was under "illegal detention" at Safdarjung Hospital after being removed from Jantar Mantar. She demanded his transfer to a private hospital, citing concerns over treatment, transparency and heavy police presence

New Delhi: Activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife Gitanjali J Angmo on Sunday said it felt like he was kept under “illegal detention” at Safdarjung Hospital after being forcibly removed from Jantar Mantar, and that the family has been denied the fundamental right to choose where he should receive treatment.

Speaking outside Safdarjung Hospital, where Wangchuk has been admitted, Angmo said the family wanted to shift him to Medanta or any other private hospital of its choice.

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“We just wanted to shift him to Medanta or any other hospital of our choice, where we are comfortable. This is a fundamental right of a citizen in India. You cannot be forced to take treatment from a certain doctor or hospital. We were exercising our right to choose where we want to be treated,” she told reporters.

She alleged that there was a “trust deficit” in the manner the government was handling Wangchuk’s treatment. “There is a trust deficit about everything the government is looking after. We were made to wait 10 hours to get a blood sample. Such things create a trust deficit. We did not want him to be in a hospital where there is so much police presence and where water cannons are deployed. We want him to be in a place where he can be comfortable,” she said. Angmo said Wangchuk had decided to continue his hunger strike despite doctors asking him to take fluids.

“Sonam wanted to remain on fast. They have been asking him to have fluids, but he didn’t want to,” she said. Speaking outside the Delhi High Court, Angmo questioned the circumstances under which Wangchuk was taken away from the protest site in the early hours of Saturday.

“They were saying they brought him to the hospital because they are concerned about his health. But if you look at the reports from the day before, he was fine. Potassium was 4.3, the other parameters were also fine,” she said.

“If they were so concerned about his health, why did they send police personnel in plain clothes? Why did they pick him up forcefully and so mercilessly? They could have conducted a medical test and informed the family if there was something wrong. There is a way of doing things in a democracy,” she said.

Without mincing words, Angmo said, “This is all drama. They were scared of Sonam’s participation in the march to Parliament. But they don’t realise that the number of people will only double. What we are fighting against in the education system is visible everywhere: misuse of police force, judiciary, media.” She also questioned the discrepancy in Wangchuk’s reported potassium levels.

“When I asked for a blood sample for tests, why did it take them 10 hours to give me the sample? When we got it checked, potassium was 3.6. Then how did the morning report say 2.9?” she asked.

Angmo further alleged that the Safdarjung Hospital authorities are neither permitting Wangchuk’s private doctors to examine him nor consulting them on his treatment. Claiming that heavy police deployment inside the hospital was creating an intimidating atmosphere, she said Wangchuk’s blood pressure had risen because of the surroundings.

“The entire floor is full of police personnel; it feels similar to Jodhpur jail. Sometimes when I am inside, a police constable is standing there. Is this illegal detention? Police do not allow me to use my phone. Sonam was not given his tablet. They are not showing any order (to do this). This is like illegal detention,” she alleged.

Earlier in the day, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah met Angmo outside the hospital and wished Wangchuk’s speedy recovery. “We wish he gets better, remains healthy, and his protest finds success. May Ladakhis get their right to live in peace and harmony, may their culture progress and may nothing come to harm Ladakh.

Please convey my message. I’m wishing him well,” Abdullah said. Wangchuk was taken to Safdarjung Hospital in the early hours of Saturday after police whisked him away from Jantar Mantar, where he had been on a hunger strike from June 28, in support of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest at the venue over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations. The CJP had termed the police action a forcible removal, while authorities maintained that it was carried out on medical advice and following the Delhi High Court’s directions.