Indian court declines to order activist Wangchuk’s discharge from hospital

NEW DELHI: Indian authorities were within their rights to move hunger-striking activist Sonam Wangchuk to a government hospital because he had not admitted himself despite his deteriorating health, a court said on Sunday, declining to order his immediate discharge.

The Delhi High Court said the government’s decision to move Wangchuk to Safdarjung Hospital against his wishes was not arbitrary. It ordered a status report to be filed before the next hearing scheduled for Friday. Wangchuk, 59, has been fasting since June 28 in solidarity with India’s Cockroach Janta Party, which was formed by Indian youths and is demanding federal Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan step down over exam paper leaks in May that affected millions of students. The campaign has emerged as a rare public challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and has drawn support across India.