Gitanjali Angmo, the wife of renowned climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, has approached India's Supreme Court seeking her husband's immediate release from custody. The petition, filed late Wednesday, contests the invocation of the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against Wangchuk, who was detained last week following a series of protests demanding greater autonomy for the region.
Wangchuk, a Padma Shri awardee known for his innovative work in sustainable education and environmental conservation in the Himalayan region, was arrested on September 27 under the NSA provisions. This draconian law allows for detention without trial for up to two years and was imposed after demonstrations in Leh turned violent, with protesters clashing with security forces over “unfulfilled promises of constitutional safeguards”. The unrest stems from long-standing grievances among Ladakh's residents, who have campaigned for the implementation of the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution to protect tribal lands and cultures since the region was carved out as a Union Territory in 2019.
Angmo's habeas corpus petition, argues that the NSA detention is "arbitrary and mala fide," lacking sufficient evidence of any threat to national security posed by her husband's peaceful activism. It highlights Wangchuk's history of non-violent advocacy, including his high-profile 21-day fast in March 2024 to draw attention to ecological and cultural erosion in Ladakh due to unchecked development. The plea urges the court to quash the detention order and direct authorities to produce Wangchuk before a judicial magistrate within 24 hours. She has refuted allegations of Wangchuk being in touch with some Pakistani agent, a claim that has been made by the Ladakh police after his arrest. "Whatever the DGP is saying, he has an agenda. They don't want to implement the 6th Schedule under any circumstances and want to make someone a scapegoat," she alleged.
The protests that led to Wangchuk's arrest involved hundreds of locals marching for statehood, that eventually turned violent, claiming at least 4 lives. On Wednesday, Angmo wrote to PM Modi, President Droupadi Murmu, Home Minister Amit Shah, Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh Kavinder Gupta, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, and also the Leh District Collector, a copy of which she posted on X. Addressing PM Modi, President Murmu and Shah, Angmo asked, "Am I not entitled to meet and speak with my husband on the phone and in person wherever he is detained?" She further questioned, "Can I not be of assistance to my husband to know his ground of detention and to espouse his legal rights of seeking justice before the court of law? Am I not entitled to know the condition of my husband, who has been in detention since 26 September 2025, with no communication with me or anyone else close to us? As a responsible citizen of India, are we not entitled to peaceful freedom of expression and movement?"
This is not the first time Wangchuk has faced legal hurdles for his activism. In 2024, he and over 100 supporters were briefly detained during similar agitations, only to be released after public outcry. Supporters view the current NSA clampdown as an attempt to silence dissent in a strategically sensitive border area.
