Govt exposed: Congress after Wangchuk’s release from jail
The opposition parties on Saturday denounced the Centre for "completely bogus grounds" framed to keep climate activist Sonam Wangchuk in prison for almost six months and alleged that his release from jail had "exposed" the arbitrary use of the National Security Act.
The Congress said the Centre should apologise not just to Wangchuk and his family, but also to the people of Ladakh.
"The Indian National Congress had condemned the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk on completely bogus grounds six months back.
"Now the Modi Government has done a total U-turn. It stands fully exposed. It should apologise to not only Mr Wangchuk and his family but to the people of Ladakh as well," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal said the Wangchuk case mirrors the treatment meted out to his party’s top leadership in the alleged Delhi liquor scam, claiming they were kept in jail "for months and years" under fabricated charges.
"The Modi Government stands exposed once again. A scientist and climate activist who had dedicated his life to the nation was arrested without any evidence," Kejriwal said on X.
"The months he spent in jail were not only a personal loss for him but also a loss to the country. This sheer dictatorship must be called out and stopped immediately," the former Delhi chief minister added.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah hailed Wangchuk’s release and demanded that the government also free those arrested in the Valley during the recent anti-US and anti-Israel protests.
"He should not have been arrested. His arrest was wrong, and that too under the NSA," Abdullah told reporters on Wangchuk’s jailing on the sidelines of Spring Festival at Badamwari here.
Wangchuk was released from Jodhpur Central Jail on Saturday afternoon, hours after the Union Government announced its decision to revoke his detention under the National Security Act.
The 59-year-old activist was detained on September 26 last year under the stringent NSA on an order issued by the Leh district magistrate.
The detention came two days after violent protests left four people dead during an agitation by the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance for statehood to Ladakh and its inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Leaders from Ladakh welcomed Wangchuk’s release and demanded the freedom of remaining detainees.
Ladakh MP Mohamad Hanifa urged the government to accept their demands for statehood and protection under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
"We welcome the release of Sonam Wangchuk. But others also need to be released, and the government should also take back the cases filed against people who participated in the protests," Hanifa told PTI.
Kargil-based politician and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) member Sajjad Kargili, in a post on X, demanded the immediate release of Deldan Namgial and Smanla Dorjey and appealed to the government to drop all charges against other detainees unconditionally.
"The revocation of NSA against Shri Sonam Wangchuk is a welcome move. However, our struggle of our legitimate rights continues," he said.
