SC will hear on Monday the plea by Sonam Wangchuk’s wife challenging his detention under the National Security Act after Ladakh protests. She calls it “illegal, arbitrary, and unconstitutional.”
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India will on Monday hear a plea filed by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali J Angmo, against his detention under the National Security Act (NSA). She has demanded his immediate release, calling the preventive detention “illegal, arbitrary, and unconstitutional”.
As per the cause list of the Supreme Court dated October 6, the petition will be heard by a bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria. The plea has been filed through senior advocate Vivek Tankha and lawyer Sarvam Ritam Khare.
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Wangchuk, who is known across the world as an innovator, environmentalist, and social reformer, was detained on September 26 under Section 3(2) of the NSA by the Deputy Commissioner of Leh.
His detention came just two days after violent protests in Ladakh, demanding statehood and inclusion under the Sixth Schedule, left four people dead and over 90 injured. He was soon moved to the Central Jail in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.
The habeas corpus petition filed by Angmo seeks urgent listing of the matter and asks the court to direct the Ladakh administration to
“produce Sonam Wangchuk before this court forthwith”.
The petition also asked for immediate access to Wangchuk, including telephonic and in-person meetings, and for quashing of the detention order.
The plea strongly questioned the use of the NSA against Wangchuk, which allows detention without trial for up to 12 months. It stated that no grounds of detention have been shared with Wangchuk or his family till date.
According to the petition,
“Wangchuk, who has been an internationally acclaimed innovator, environmentalist, and social reformer, has always espoused Gandhian and peaceful methods to highlight the ecological and democratic concerns of Ladakh.”
The petition said that when he was detained, Wangchuk was still recovering from a long hunger strike carried out to press for Ladakh’s demand for constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule.
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It alleged that he was shifted to Jodhpur
“without being provided medicines, personal belongings, or access to his family and counsel”.
His wife also said that she herself has been placed under a kind of virtual house arrest in Leh. Students and staff of the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL), which was founded by Wangchuk, are reportedly being subjected to harassment, intimidation, and unnecessary investigations.
The plea added:
“The arbitrary transfer of Wangchuk to Jodhpur, the harassment of students and staff of HIAL, the virtual house arrest of the petitioner herself, and the false propaganda linking Wangchuk to foreign entities clearly demonstrate mala fide state action intended to suppress democratic dissent and peaceful environmental activism.”
The petition further stressed that Wangchuk’s detention has caused deep emotional distress among the people of Ladakh.
It said,
“A recent tragic incident has been reported where a member of the Ladakh Buddhist Association committed suicide, allegedly depressed after his (Wangchuk’s) detention, underscoring the devastating psychological impact on the community,”
It urged the court to direct the authorities:
“Direct respondents to ensure that Sonam Wangchuk is provided with his medicines, clothes, food and other basic necessities forthwith.”
The plea also asked for the detention order, its grounds, and all related records to be produced before the Supreme Court.
It sought a
“direction to the respondents to produce a medical report of Wangchuk, after immediate doctor consultation, before the court.”
Additionally, the petition requested that authorities be ordered to
“stop immediate harassment of HIAL and its members/students who have done no harm and are tirelessly working for the benefit of the ecology.”
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