New Delhi: The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Thursday appealed to activist Sonam Wangchuk to end his ongoing fast, saying the country needed him to remain "alive, active and engaged" rather than risk his health and life for a system in distress.
Later in the day, SCBA President Vikas Singh also visited Jantar Mantar to meet Wangchuk and handed over a letter, urging him to end his fast.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has been holding a protest for over 25 days demanding Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination.
Wangchuk joined the agitation on June 28 and has been on an indefinite fast since then.
In a resolution adopted by its Executive Committee, the SCBA expressed concern over Wangchuk's fast undertaken to draw attention to issues surrounding the NEET examinations and the broader state of the education system.
The committee said Wangchuk had put his health and life at risk for the future of the country's children and had once again brought national attention to concerns affecting students and educational institutions.
"His longstanding work, marked by discipline, innovation and an unwavering commitment to young learners, has transformed countless lives and stands as a model of service rooted in action, institution-building and direct engagement with communities," the resolution said.
It said his present fast had served the "national conscience" and underscored the importance of moral courage in public life. It added that every citizen had a responsibility to strengthen the nation's moral fabric and uphold constitutional values.
"We note with deep concern a period marked by systemic failures affecting millions of young citizens and a troubling erosion of accountability across public institutions," it said.
The SCBA also expressed regret that a person of Wangchuk's integrity had felt compelled to undertake such an extreme step for the betterment of the education system. It voiced concern over what it described as systemic failures affecting millions of young people and an erosion of accountability in public institutions.
While acknowledging that the fast had awakened public conscience, the committee said India did not need Wangchuk to jeopardise his life and instead required his continued leadership in efforts aimed at strengthening institutions and restoring public trust.
The SCBA resolved to extend legal and research support, within the scope of its mandate, to initiatives promoting transparency, fairness and accountability in educational processes. It also pledged to advocate reforms aimed at enhancing institutional integrity and ethical governance.
The association reaffirmed its commitment to constitutional morality and institutional integrity and urged Wangchuk to discontinue his fast and safeguard his health.
The letter by the SCBA president to Wangchuk strongly criticised the alleged silence of ministers and leaders over the issue and said that "their role becomes even more suspect when a person of your integrity is willing to place their own life at risk".
"India does not need you to die for a broken system. We need you to be alive, working and leading us from the front. Shaking the conscience of this country is a very long journey, and it requires time, which means it requires you to be here with us," he said.
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