The Opposition on Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of insulting activist Sonam Wangchuk after he was forcibly taken to hospital by the Delhi Police from Jantar Mantar where he had been on a hunger strike.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that Wangchuk was on a non-violent hunger strike and removing him from the protest site was wrong. “The core tenets of the Modi government are Asatya [falsehood] and Hinsa [violence],” Gandhi said on social media.

The leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said that paper leaks, the rising cost of education and student suicides are critical issues for India’s future. “No amount of force can deter India’s students, and those of us who love and believe in them, from raising these issues,” he said.

Wangchuk, who has been on a fast since June 28, was taken away from the protest site on Saturday morning, with the police claiming that he had been shifted to hospital for “essential medical care” in compliance with a High Court order.

His fast, which is part of a protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged mismanagement of competitive examinations, had entered its 21st day on Saturday.

Follow the latest updates from the protest here.

Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal said on social media that the government should have held a dialogue with Wangchuk instead. In another post, Kejriwal said that the government should focus on reforming the country’s education and examination system rather than “crushing the cockroach movement”.

“The Modi government’s defeat is in forcibly dealing with Sonam Wangchuk,” the former Delhi chief minister said.

Kejriwal also called on the public to join the protest by the political campaign Cockroach Janta Party. Wangchuk, the campaign’s founder Abhijeet Dipke and the young protesters were fighting for the future of children, the AAP chief added.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge described the incident at Jantar Mantar as “another black stain on democracy” and the Constitution.

“This tyrannical government has spared no one”, Kharge said on social media. “In their eyes, anyone who raises their voice is an ‘Anti-National’, a ‘parasite’!”

Congress’ General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal said that instead of sacking Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the government had removed Wangchuk from the protest site.

Venugopal said there was a need for “compassion and humanity” from the government, but alleged that it had chosen to break up a peaceful protest as public pressure mounted. He described the action as “highly condemnable” and said the public would punish the government “at the appropriate moment”.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said she was concerned about Wangchuk’s health.

The activist had sought dialogue, but his appeal had been met with silence, the former West Bengal chief minister said. “In a democracy, peaceful dissent deserves engagement, not silence,” she said.

She demanded that the activist be moved to a private hospital.

The activist has been admitted to the Safdarjung Hospital, Wangchuk’s wife Gitanjali Angmo said.

TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose alleged that the police action was taken “because the Modi government is rattled” and was in “a state of panic”, ANI reported. “It is dictatorship and is unacceptable, unfortunate, and constitutes an assault on democracy and on the rights of the people,” she added.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said it was “utterly reprehensible” that Wangchuk was forcibly removed from his indefinite hunger strike and demanded that his medical care be conducted under judicial oversight.

Yadav also criticised the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party saying that it was “not the BJP government – it’s arrogance!”. He alleged that the Hindutva party’s “divisive” mindset led it to disperse movements based on unity and solidarity.

Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav described the action as an “assault on democracy” and said the BJP government could no longer tolerate peaceful protests.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat visited Jantar Mantar and expressed her solidarity with the protesters after the police action.

Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) spokesperson Anish Gawande said that the right to protest was a fundamental right and questioned the decision to move Wangchuk to hospital without the consent of his family and doctors.

“This is a country of Mahatma Gandhi,” he said. “Disobeying a Satyagrahi’s wishes goes against the moral fabric of this country.”

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Aaditya Thackeray also criticised the police action, saying that peaceful protests against exam paper leaks were being broken up by a government that believed in “dictatorship” instead of “simple dialogue”.

Lok Sabha MP Chandra Shekhar Azad criticised Wangchuk’s forced removal, saying “democracy is once again disgraced”. He alleged that the action was “a direct assault on democratic values”.

“Has the right to peaceful protest now been limited only to the convenience of those in power,” the Bhim Army chief asked.

Written by Sara Varghese. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Also read: What Irom Sharmila, who fasted for 16 years, thinks about Sonam Wangchuck’s hunger strike