A man who was arrested while protesting against cow slaughter in the New Delhi area in October has been on a hunger strike inside Tihar Jail, where he was shifted a day after his arrest.
According to Tihar Jail authorities, Gopaldas was on a hunger strike when he came to the jail and has continued with it. “We tried to feed him, but he has been adamant on continuing with the hunger strike. He says he has been fighting for the cause of “saving cows” and wants to continue with it,” said a jail insider.
Gopaldas was arrested near the Parliament Street police station on October 31 when he was trying to march towards Parliament with a severed cow’s head.
“We arrested Gopaldas and his fourteen other supporters when they were trying to march towards Parliament. We tried to tell them that it is not allowed but they would not listen and also broke the barricades,” said a senior police officer.
A case under sections of violating Section 144 and obstructing a public servant from discharge of duties was registered at the Parliament Street police station. Gopaldas was later sent to judicial custody as he had earlier also tried to march towards the BJP office with a severed cow’s head.
The man has reportedly also stopped drinking water and the Aam Admi Party has expressed concern over his deteriorating health. “The deteriorating health of Sant Gopaldas is a matter of serious concern, compounded by the fact that he has now even refused to drink water,” read a press statement by the party.
The AAP condemns the high handedness of the BJP government. Its insensitivity and brutality on a peaceful agitation going on for a long time is completely uncalled for, the statement said.
It added that the lathi-charge on Gopaldas and those peacefully protesting with him at Jantar Mantar had resulted in serious injuries to some of the protesters, two of whom have fractures in their arms and 14 of them have been arrested.
“What is shocking is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the campaign for the Lok Sabha elections had promised action on the demands of Gopaldas and his team. The BJP during the elections had also come out with a slogan –Vote for Modi, save cows. It is clear that the BJP’s slogan was merely for garnering votes,” the statement read.
“The AAP demands that the Central government immediately initiate a dialogue with Gopaldas and persuade him to end his indefinite fast,” it concluded.
