The Delhi High Court on Sunday refused to grant interim relief to Gitanjali J Angmo, activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, who had sought permission to shift him from the government-run Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi, The Hindu reported.

The court noted that Wangchuk has been on a hunger strike for 17 days, and remarked that his health condition is “perilous”. It said that the decision to shift him to a hospital was taken based on his health, and was not an “arbitrary” one, according to Bar and Bench.

Angmo, while seeking that Wangchuk be shifted from the Safdarjung Hospital, had said that she had “lost faith” in the institute.

In a social media post on Sunday, Angmo alleged that the hospital had told her that Wangchuk’s potassium level had dropped to 2.9 and described it as “life-threatening”.

However, the hospital’s public health bulletin omitted the figure and referred only to “decreasing potassium levels”, she added.

She claimed that an independent laboratory test conducted later found his potassium level to be 3.5, within the normal range.

Angmo also said that the hospital had repeatedly refused to discharge Wangchuk or allow his transfer to a private hospital of the family’s choice.

“With around 30 police personnel stationed on our floor and well over 100 across the hospital, our movement is severely restricted,” she said.

She added that this was not “medical care” but “illegal detention”.

Wangchuk has been on a hunger strike since June 28. His fast is part of a protest led by the political campaign Cockroach Janta Party demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged mismanagement of competitive examinations.

On Saturday morning, the activist was forcibly removed from the protest site at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar and taken to the hospital by the police.

On Sunday at 8.30 am, updates by Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital said that Wangchuk’s vital parameters were stable. However, his blood parameters remain “marginally altered”, it added.

CJP protests

After Wangchuk was removed from Jantar Mantar, Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke began an indefinite hunger strike.

Dipke also called for nationwide peaceful protests. “We need to send a message that the people won’t accept this kind of dictatorship,” he said in a video shared by the political campaign.

He said that Wangchuk’s removal from the protest site would not end the campaign and reiterated the protester’s plan to march to Parliament on Monday, when the Monsoon Session begins.

Three members of the All India Students’ Association – Neha Bora, Manish Kumar and Aameen Amitosh – are also continuing their hunger strike.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Sneha and Neerad Pandharipande.