New Delhi: A day after Union ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh met him in hospital, Sonam Wangchuk Wednesday agreed to end his hunger strike on the condition that the Modi government gives unequivocal assurance that none of the young protesters who participated in the CJP movement will face punitive or retaliatory legal action. Else, he will be forced to continue his fast, the activist said.
Wednesday was Day 25 of his hunger strike.
“I respectfully request an unequivocal assurance from the government that none of the young protesters will face any punitive or retaliatory legal action for participating in this movement. Their only “offence” has been to raise their voice for a fair and accountable education system,” his letter to Nadda and Singh read.
He added: “I shall end my fast with faith that the government has heard not only my appeal but also the aspirations of lakhs of young Indians.”
In the absence of such an assurance, Wangchuk said that he would be forced to continue the fast indefinitely. “I also hope that there will be no further use of excessive police force to repress the movement. The future of our democracy depends not on how it treats those who agree with it, but on how it treats its young citizens when they dare to speak with courage, hope and conviction,” he wrote in the letter which was posted on X.
Wangchuk said he was thankful to Nadda and Singh for their assurance that the central government would “positively consider” providing compensation to families of students who died by suicide after the NEET-UG paper leak, and a “meaningful discussion in Parliament to ensure accountability”, including “consideration of the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan”.
AN APPEAL TO THE GOVERNMENT
regarding breaking my fast…
Once the assurance from govt come I will also appeal to the peacefully protesting students to halt the movement for now and enter into dialogue with the government pic.twitter.com/gR6S8woF5R
— Sonam Wangchuk (@Wangchuk66) July 22, 2026
Meanwhile, several Opposition MPs wrote to Wangchuk requesting him to end his hunger strike.
“We, as Members of Parliament, request you to kindly withdraw your fast. While we take forward in Parliament the national mission and debate on educational reforms and the future of India’s youth, so passionately espoused by you,” read the letter undersigned by John Brittas, Shashi Tharoor, Ram Gopal Yadav, Sagarika Ghose, Kapil Sibal and others.
The MPs further assured him that they too will demand that the government not take coercive action against the protesters. “We will also demand from the government, in the larger public interest, that no coercive action, whether by way of registration of any FIR or through any other administrative measure, be initiated or pursued against the protesters in connection with the peaceful democratic movement,” the MPs’ letter read.
Wangchuk thanked all 65 MPs and agreed with their proposal that he had “much work to do in the service of our nation”.
“I want to return to my students, to education, and to the work that has defined my life. But I cannot do so at the cost of the very young people for whom this movement began,” he wrote.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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