Delhi High Court dismisses PIL against Sonam Wangchuk's removal from Jantar Mantar

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by a lawyer against the forced removal of activist Sonam Wangchuk amid his hunger strike at a protest site in Jantar Mantar.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia pointed out that a similar issue has already been raised by Wangchuk's wife, Gitanjali Angmo.

"This was raised by his wife. If you are still aggrieved, since it is a solitary event, approach the authorities," the Court told the PIL petitioner.

The petitioner persisted that he is seeking wider reliefs.

"I am not seeking registration of FIR. I am seeking the constitution of a committee...Apart from Mr Wangchuk, several other protesters were also beaten up. What happened on July 18 was a public issue not a private issue. Therefore I am saying issue notice and pass interim orders," he said.

The Court, however, was not persuaded to hear the matter further, suggesting that the police should be first approached to register a criminal case if the petitioner feels a crime has been committed.

"SIT will be constituted only after the registration of FIR... His wife has approached the court and filed an appeal as well. So far as FIR is concerned, the person (Wangchuk) has not lodged any (complaint). If you feel an offence has bee committed, you can file an FIR or file a private complaint."

Central Government Standing Counsel (CGSC) Ashish Dixit appeared for the government and said no complaint has been given by the petitioner.

The Court then proceeded to dismiss the PIL, observing that the issue of Sonam Wanchuk's removal from Jantar Mantar has already been examined by the Court in a July 21 order passed on his wife's petition.

"So far as other prayers are concerned, such as direction to lodge FIR and preservation of records, since the FIR is sought to be lodged is in relation to a reportedly solitary incident (Wangchuk's removal from Jantar Mantar), it is always open for the petitioner to take recourse to Section 173 and other ancilliary provisions of the BNSS. In view of the aforesaid, we are not inclined to entertain the writ petition and it is hereby dismissed," the Court added.

The PIL concerned the early morning removal of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk from Delhi's Jantar Mantar on July 18, after he had been on an indefinite hunger strike for about 20 days as part of protest led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) over paper leaks in national examinations.

The Delhi Police shifted Wangchuk to Safdarjung Hospital, citing his deteriorating health. However, protesters alleged that Wangchuk was forcibly removed without his consent in a pre-planned operation involving plainclothes personnel, human chains and white sheets that shielded the action from public view. 

His wife, Gitanjali Angmo later moved the High Court seeking directions to shift him from Safdarjung Hospital to Medanta, raising concerns about transparency and access to Wangchuk at Safdarjang. In the same plea, Angmo's counsel had also questioned how Wangchuk was forcibly taken to the hospital, without his consent.

A Division Bench of the High Court yesterday directed that Wangchuk be allowed to shift to Medanta.

The PIL dismissed today, filed by advocate Shakeel Abbas, sought an independent judicial inquiry into Wangchuk's removal and the dispersal of protesters from Jantar Mantar on July 18.

Abbas contended that Delhi Police used excessive force, illegally detained several demonstrators and prevented them from exercising their constitutional rights under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution.

It was claimed that police personnel cordoned off the protest site, used white sheets as a visual barrier while clearing the area and detained several participants, with some alleging the use of force.

The prayers sought included those for the registration of an FIR into the events of July 18 and the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for investigating the said incident, as well as to preserve the records like CCTV footage, body camera footage etc.

The petitioner also prayed for directions to ensure that no coercive action is taken against Sonam Wangchuk and other protesters, except in accordance with law, and for directions to ensure that protesters are not harassed.

The Court today clarified that the petitioner is free to pursue other remedies available in law with respect to these wider prayers.

On a related note, the Court today also issued notice on two other PIL petitions flagging the police excesses against Jantar Mantar protesters in Delhi on July 20 and 21.

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