Omar Abdullah slams government over Sonam Wangchuk's hunger strike: 'Politics has its place but...'

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday expressed concern over activist Sonam Wangchuk's deteriorating health, saying the Centre should have reached out to him and appealed for an end to his indefinite hunger strike instead of remaining silent.

Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, Abdullah said Wangchuk's health had worsened after spending over two weeks on a fast and questioned why no effort had been made to initiate a dialogue.

"As far as I know, he has only one demand that due to irregularities in the NEET exam and the cancellation of the exam, which caused a lot of trouble and tension for the children, the Education Minister should either resign or be removed from his post," he said.

Abdullah said he was surprised by what he described as the Centre's lack of response despite Wangchuk's condition.

"The surprising thing is that it has been 18 days for him, perhaps the 19th day is going on. He has lost around 9 kg of weight, and it is affecting his health. But the government is not budging, not appealing to him in any way to stop his hunger strike. Politics has its place, but somewhere there should also be a place for humanity and compassion," he said.

Drawing a comparison with the Anna Hazare-led anti-corruption movement during the UPA government, Abdullah said the then government had attempted to resolve the impasse through discussions.

"But, no attempt has been made yet to talk to Wangchuk. We don't know what the government's attitude will be in the coming days, but we are definitely concerned about Wangchuk health," he added.

Backing the protesters' demand, the chief minister said the concerns over the alleged NEET irregularities deserved attention.

"Many people (politicians) have gone there. When they are demanding justice in connection with the NEET exam, we too feel their demand is not wrong, the demand is right. But, I do not know why this government doesn't even pay attention to these things," he said.

The Cockroach Janta Party has been protesting for more than 25 days, seeking Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination. Wangchuk joined the protest on June 28 and has remained on an indefinite fast since then.

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