Sonam Wangchuk: The Making of India’s New Protest Icon

By MANISH ANAND

While the Jantar Mantar may be cleared of the CJP activists, Wangchuk seems now battle hardened for a larger role in the civil society movement. The space is available on a platter.

New Delhi, July 18, 2026 — In a span of a few months, activist Sonam Wangchuk’s indefinite fasts have been disrupted twice. On Saturday, the Delhi Police forced the shift of Wangchuk to Safdarjung Hospital on grounds that his health conditions had deteriorated.

Earlier, Wangchuk’s indefinite fast in Ladakh had ended in his arrest and incarceration in a Rajasthan jail. In Ladakh, Wangchuk had been holding periodic indefinite fasts to protest the alleged exploitation of environment in the hilly Union territory.

By the time Wangchuk arrived at Jantar Mantar to give a face to the protest of Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), Wangchuk had already established himself as a veteran activist with his skill in holding indefinite fasts.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre has been facing episodic protests, all through its 12-year-long tenure so far. Farmers mostly had been at the loggerheads with the Modi government.

Even now farmers are holding protests in the BJP-ruled Gujarat against land acquisition for solar power transmission. Tribal activists are holding protests against Vedanta’s mining bid in Odisha.

But none of the protest movements faced by the Modi government had a face. Wangchuk seems to be an exception, for he has risen as a protest icon against the Modi government.

While he held fast protests in Ladakh, his support remained largely confined to the internet. As he hogged the limelight with the CJP protest, Wangchuk arrived on the national stage.

The civil society protest movement was given a body blow after Anna Hazare’s protégé Arvind Kejriwal had turned political. That led to a prolonged vacuum for the civil society protest.

In the CJP protest, even while it didn’t hide its political ambitions, the civil society found a new innings with Wangchuk in the lead.

While the Jantar Mantar may be cleared of the CJP activists, Wangchuk seems now battle hardened for a larger role in the civil society movement. The space is available on a platter.

Wangchuk enjoys an image of an education icon. Attempts to malign his image in the past have largely failed. In the months to come as the Modi government remains defiant of growing anger among the youth, Wangchuk may find a fertile ground to launch a larger movement.

(This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author’s own.)

Police Shift Sonam Wangchuk to Hospital as CJP Protest Faces Action

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About The Author

Manish Anand

Manish Anand is a senior journalist with more than two decades of hardcore reporting on beats such as Prime Minister’s Office, Parliament, BJP, Congress, Planning Commission, NITI Aayog, and scores of Union Ministries.

His past has been with The New Indian Express, The Asian Age/Deccan Chronicle, and The Statesman.

For about 15 years, Manish was also a regular commentator and host for talks on AIR on foreign affairs.

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