NEW DELHI (Kashmir English): India’s leading social activist and educationist Sonam Wangchuk has ended her 26-day hunger strike in support of young protesters demanding education reforms.
Wangchuk, also known as “Sonam Sir”, said on social media platform X that he had decided to end his hunger strike after detailed negotiations on various conditions and to avoid possible violence in the country.
Just now in the presence of Union Ministers Sh. JP Nadda, Dr. Jitendra Singh and the senior leaders of Apex Body of Leh Ladakh I finally broke my fast after 26 days. Earlier 65 members of parliament from different political parties had visited or signed letters urging me to break… pic.twitter.com/RFCet7Oksy
— Sonam Wangchuk (@Wangchuk66) July 23, 2026
Wangchuk, 59, was on a hunger strike in support of the Cockroach Janata Party protesters, who are demanding education reforms and the resignation of Indian Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan after the NEET exam paper was leaked.
Wangchuk said during the strike that he had lost 11 kilograms but was “still alive”. he was forcibly removed from the protest site in Delhi last week and taken to hospital.
According to the Indian media outlet NDTV, Wangchuk ended his hunger strike after the government assured him that legal action would not be taken against the protesters at Jantar Mantar. During this, India’s ministers of state and the health minister also met him at the hospital.
Reacting to Wangchuck’s decision, Cockroach Janata Party founder Abhijeet Deepke said that we are happy and satisfied that Sonam Sir has ended his 26-day hunger strike.
However, he clarified that the Cockroach Janata Party’s peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar will continue until Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns.
