Sonam Wangchuk, the Indian activist who has been on hunger strike for 26 days in support of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), says he has lost 11kg (24lb) but is “still alive”. The 62-year-old, popularly known as “Sonam sir”, was forcibly removed from the CJP’s protest venue at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Saturday and taken to hospital, where he continues his fast. Medanta Hospital in Gurugram said he is being treated by a multidisciplinary team and is stable, with vital signs within accepted parameters.
Wangchuk has been the main draw at the youth-led movement seeking education reforms and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The protests erupted after a Supreme Court judge compared unemployed young people to “cockroaches” – a label they embraced, spawning an online movement with an AI-generated cockroach mascot. Figures show 40% of graduates below 25 are unemployed in India, and the anger has been fuelled by a scandal that saw millions of students forced to re-sit exams after question papers were leaked.
“Sonam Wangchuk loses 11kg after 26-day hunger strike as India's Gen Z 'cockroach' movement rocks Modi's government.”
Thousands continue to gather at the protest site despite a brutal police crackdown on Monday’s march to parliament, which left dozens of protesters and policemen injured. The violence has stirred public anger and galvanised India’s opposition, posing a challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. Modi has not directly addressed the protests but posted on X: “Nothing is more important than the welfare and future of our youth. We have decided to set up fast-track courts to ensure swift and stringent punishment for those involved in paper leaks.”
A CJP spokesperson rejected the government’s response. “You are applying medicine after an injury, but our struggle asks why the injury has to happen,” Ashutosh Ranka said in a video on X, indicating the protesters would not back down. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, opposition MPs, activists and celebrities – as well as Health Minister JP Nadda – have all urged Wangchuk to end his fast. But before being taken to hospital, he endured 21 days in Delhi’s scorching summer heat on nothing but salt and water. The movement, which started as an online joke, has now disrupted Indian politics – and shows no sign of retreating.