Supreme Court to Hear Plea Challenging Detention of Climate Activist Sonam Wangchuk
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The Supreme Court will hear a plea filed by Gitanjali J Angmo, wife of jailed climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, on Monday. Angmo is challenging Wangchuk's detention under the National Security Act (NSA), terming it 'illegal and arbitrary'. The detention was ordered on September 26, two days after violent protests in Leh, Ladakh, left four people dead and 90 injured. According to Angmo's plea, the detention order is based on 'stale FIRs, vague imputations, and speculative assertions', and lacks any connection to the grounds of detention. The plea also claims that Wangchuk's contributions to environmental conservation in Ladakh and across India over three decades make it 'wholly preposterous' that he would be targeted. Wangchuk had condemned the violence on social media, stating that it would undermine the peaceful pursuit of Ladakh's 'tapasya'. Angmo has argued that the government's accusation of Wangchuk inciting the violence is unfounded. The NSA empowers the Centre and states to detain individuals to prevent them from acting against national security. The maximum detention period is 12 months, although it can be revoked earlier. A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria is likely to hear the matter on Monday.
