Attempt to Cause Chaos? Sonam Wangchuk Marches to Delhi Despite Prohibitory Orders

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and 120 other people from Ladakh - who had marched to Delhi demanding that the union territory be included in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution - were detained at the capital's border for violating prohibitory orders.

The mega march came even after the Delhi police had banned gatherings of five or more people, carrying banners, placards, and arms, and protests in the central part and bordering areas for the next six days, citing law and order issues, including calls for protests by several organisations.

Wangchuk and those accompanying him were detained at the Delhi border for violating prohibitory orders and were taken to different police stations, including Bawana, Narela Industrial Area and Alipur, the police said. 

"We tried to convince them to go back as Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (which prohibits assembly of five or more people) is imposed in the national capital but they were adamant," the officer said.

The activist and others have launched an indefinite fast at the police stations where they have been kept.

Congress Cries Foul

The Congress defended the cilmate activist and slammed the government over his detention, with Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi terming it as "unacceptable".

The detention of Sonam Wangchuk ji and hundreds of Ladakhis peacefully marching for environmental and constitutional rights is unacceptable, said Rahul Gandhi . 

People's Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti also joined the Congress in condemning the Centre over the detention of Sonam Wangchuk, saying even the fundamental right to protest has been "snatched" from the people.

BJP Terms Congress Reaction as 'Hypocrisy'

The BJP on Tuesday described the Congress ' condemnation of the detention of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and several other Ladakhis as "hypocrisy in extreme".

Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar said, "I don't know the facts. I will have to check the facts." "If Rahul Gandhi has a comment to make, why (does) he maintain a conspicuous silence when cartoonists are lifted in Kolkata and a satirist is jailed in Tamil Nadu," Shankar asked, adding that the Congress leader's reaction to Wangchuk's detention was "hypocrisy in extreme".

The BJP reminded Congress that a Jadavpur University professor and his neighbour were arrested in West Bengal in 2012 for posting on social media a cartoon showing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee .

In 2017, a freelance cartoonist was arrested in Tamil Nadu for allegedly depicting the then chief minister K Palaniswami in an obscene manner in a caricature, the party said.