Climate activist and education reformer Sonam Wangchuk has said he is ready to continue his hunger strike for six weeks and, if required, go on a fast unto death unless the Centre takes cognisance of what he has called two failures of governance — how the Centre has handled India’s public examination system and its approach towards Ladakh’s long-pending constitutional and environmental demands.
Talking to The Quint From the protest site, Wangchuk stated that the indefinite fast is not only to show support to students asking for accountability after the leak of examination papers but also an attempt to highlight what he sees as a bigger trend of government inaction.
"My previous hunger strikes I started at one week, then two weeks, then three weeks. “This is the sixth time, and it will be for six weeks or death,” said Wangchuk. Six weeks away, death is more likely than life. Let it be. I'm up for that."
Why Wangchuk Joined the Students' Protest
Wangchuk joined the student-led protest in support of those affected by the NEET paper leak, saying that students were paying the price for institutional failures. “I’m here to support the cause of education and Ladakh for the cause of the environment,” he said. “The students did nothing wrong. The government’s fault was that their papers were leaked. But they were made to suffer.”
He added that he never intended to return to a hunger strike but felt compelled to do so amid what he called the government's backtracking on assurances related to Ladakh's environmental and cultural protections.
"I never thought I would have to sit on hunger strike again. But the way things were going with the environment, cultural safeguards in Ladakh and the treatment of students, I had no other choice," he said.
'Changing Ministers Alone Won't Be Enough'
The activist said he hopes the government responds before his health deteriorates, but stressed that merely changing ministers would not be enough.
"I hope that during the Monsoon Session of Parliament, they take up the issue of education, particularly examination systems and their vulnerability to corruption," he said. "If that happens, I won't have to stake my life."
No Talks Before the Fast, Says Wangchuk
Asked if the government had reached out to him before the protest escalated, Wangchuk said any outreach happened only after he announced his decision."Not until now. Then I hear they are ready to talk. But a good, sensitive government takes pre-emptive, not reactive steps," he said.
The protest has come amid renewed demands by student groups for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the handling of the examination controversy.
Wangchuk said he kept himself away from decisions about the movement’s political demands." I'm backing them. They will take the final call,” he said, adding that the same principle applied to the Ladakh movement where local civil society organisations would decide the future course of action.
Why Ladakh Remains Central to Wangchuk's Protest
Wangchuk, a Ramon Magsaysay Award-winning innovator and one of the leading faces of the civil society movement in Ladakh, has emerged as a prominent voice demanding constitutional safeguards for the Union Territory since 2019. Along with organisations such as Apex Body Leh and the Kargil Democratic Alliance, he has campaigned for statehood, inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, greater local representation and stronger protections for Ladakh’s fragile ecology.
“The Monsoon Session of Parliament is around the corner and I hope the lawmakers will use this opportunity to overhaul India’s examination system and also address the pending demands of Ladakh,” Wangchuk said. He says he is ready to keep his fast going until then, for “six weeks or death.”