‘Our Response Must Only Be Flowers’: Wangchuk Urges Protesters to Remain Peaceful

Activist says any attempt at provocation should be met with restraint, while supporters reiterate commitment to non-violent protests amid the continuing student agitation.

NEW DELHI: Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Thursday appealed to supporters of the ongoing student movement to maintain peace and discipline, asserting that any attempt to provoke violence should be met with restraint as his indefinite hunger strike entered its 26th day.

In a post on X, Wangchuk said he was distressed by reports that “anti-social elements” were attempting to exploit the protests in some places even as demonstrations at Jantar Mantar had remained peaceful.

“Peace and only peace is my way,” Wangchuk wrote, urging supporters not to retaliate under any circumstances. “No matter what the other side does our response must only be flowers. Please keep this tradition at all costs,” he said.

His appeal comes in the wake of the ‘Sansad Chalo’ march on July 20, during which Delhi Police prevented thousands of protesters from proceeding towards Parliament. Police used tear gas and baton charges to disperse demonstrators, while protesters also alleged the use of pellet guns and tasers during the operation. The police have not accepted those allegations.

Following the police action, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which is spearheading the agitation, alleged that attempts were being made to portray the student movement as violent and to associate it with unrelated incidents elsewhere in the national capital. Delhi Police rejected the allegations.

Earlier in the day, Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali Angmo, defended the conduct of the protesters, describing it as “deeply painful” to see students being portrayed negatively. In a separate post on X, she commended what she described as the discipline, compassion and civic responsibility displayed by the young participants throughout the agitation.

Angmo said the protesters had cared for strangers, shared food and water, maintained cleanliness at protest sites, assisted elderly participants and continued peaceful demonstrations despite what she described as intense provocation. She said their conduct reflected hope for the country’s future and thanked parents for raising “compassionate, responsible and courageous citizens”.

The CJP-led agitation began on June 20, with demands for accountability over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, reforms in the education system and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Wangchuk joined the protest on June 28 and has been on an indefinite hunger strike since then. He is currently undergoing treatment at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram and has offered to end his fast if the Centre assures that no punitive action will be taken against peaceful protesters who participated in the movement.