New Delhi, Feb 5— The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre whether it was willing to reconsider the preventive detention of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk under the National Security Act (NSA), pointing to his deteriorating health and the length of his custody.
“Considering the health condition of the detainee…the report which we saw earlier shows that his health is not that good. Is there a possibility for the government to rethink or even relook?” a Bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice P B Varale told Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj.
Wangchuk has been lodged in Jodhpur Central Jail since September 26, 2025, after being detained under Section 3(2) of the NSA, following violent protests in Ladakh over demands for statehood and Sixth Schedule status that left four people dead and nearly 100 injured.
Responding to the court, Nataraj said he would convey the Bench’s suggestion to the authorities but maintained that Wangchuk played a key role in triggering the violence.
“It was ultimately his provocative speech — provocation, instigation. A person need not actively participate. The propensity to influence a group of persons is more than sufficient,” the ASG argued, adding that the detention order had been approved on October 3, 2025, and had not been challenged.
The court said it would take up the matter again on Thursday.
Earlier, Wangchuk had denied inciting any uprising, asserting on January 29 that he was exercising his democratic right to criticise and protest, and rejecting allegations that he sought to provoke an Arab Spring-type movement.
The Centre and the Ladakh administration have defended the detention, describing Wangchuk as a threat in a sensitive border region.
“This court is dealing with a person who is instigating people in a border area adjacent to Pakistan and China, where regional sensitivity is involved,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Bench earlier this week.
Mehta also claimed that all procedural safeguards under the NSA were followed and that Wangchuk was treated fairly while in custody. On Monday, he alleged the activist attempted to encourage Gen-Z style mass movements similar to those seen in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
The protests that preceded Wangchuk’s detention came after months of peaceful demonstrations and hunger strikes across Ladakh, drawing hundreds of participants daily, before turning violent in late September.
Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali Angmo, has challenged the detention before the Supreme Court, calling it “illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional” and alleging violations of fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19, 21 and 22 of the Constitution.
Read more | Centre tells SC Wangchuk incited youth towards violent protests in Ladakh