Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Imran Masood raised questions on activist Sonam Wangchuk, saying that he didn’t end his hunger strike when 45 opposition MPs made an appeal but called it off after the government’s appeal. Masood claimed that Wangchuk had nothing to do with the students’ movement.
Masood accused , as the climate and social activist ended his hunger strike.
Speaking to a news agency, Masood compared Wangchuk to social activist Anna Hazare and questioned why no students were present during . He alleged that the fast was withdrawn following a personal understanding rather than a collective decision.
“He is Anna (social activist Anna Hazare) part two. For 12 years, Anna has remained silent, and now Sonam Wangchuk will remain silent. You were striking a deal with the government yesterday; at the time, was any student present there? What else is there except your personal deal with the government,” asked Masood.
Targeting the Centre, Masood said that the government doesn’t want any discussion on NEET and was just trying to manufacture a narrative. In another remark, Masood said that if the government had been serious, it should have waived off students’ loans like it does for corporates.
BJP Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla Slams Imran Masood
Hitting out at Imran Masood, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused the opposition of “stooping low”.
He alleged that LoP Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi is “running away” from a discussion on Sonam Wangchuk’s demands and claimed that while the Union government successfully engaged with the protesters, Congress has resorted to insulting the climate activist through its leaders.
“How low can Congress stoop in the fight for credit? The ‘Yuvraj’ of Congress (Rahul Gandhi) stayed abroad for 21 days; he never visited Sonam Wangchuk, nor did he go to the Jantar Mantar protest. In fact, today, when the government spoke with the protesters and Sonam Wangchuk, and got him to break his fast, the entire country is happy about it,” Poonawalla said in a video message.
The BJP leader further alleged that Rahul Gandhi is avoiding a formal discussion on the Ladakhi activist’s demands and is instead using party leaders to disparage him.
“Sonam Wangchuk’s demand was for a discussion in Parliament, but Rahul Gandhi is running away from that discussion as well. Instead, he has directed his leader Imran Masood to abuse and insult Sonam Wangchuk. Imran Masood has issued statements insulting Sonam Wangchuk, calling him a ‘deal-maker’ and claiming he made a deal. By comparing him to Anna Hazare, he used derogatory words for both Anna Hazare and Sonam Wangchuk,” he added.
Poonawalla also questioned the silence of certain civil society groups and individuals, specifically naming the CJP and Abhijeet Dipke, over the alleged derogatory remarks.
“Does CJP support this now? Will Abhijeet Dipke and CJP condemn this? They are using the shoulders of the Congress–the same Congress that allowed paper leaks and shamelessly never brought an anti-copying law or fast-track courts. Today, the Prime Minister spoke about fast-track courts, strict laws, and the best interests of the students,” he said.