Rajasthan Student on Hunger Strike Forcibly Hospitalised After CJP Visit

Police in Jaipur shifted Rajasthan University LLM student Shubham Rewar to SMS Hospital on Thursday, the eighth day of his hunger strike for student-union elections and a Rajasthani language department. The move came two days after Cockroach Janta Party national spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka visited the protest and backed his demands.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Rewar told The Indian Express that police used a cane charge to clear the site and were pressing him to take a drip. He said he had put in writing that the fast would continue until student elections resume in the state and a Rajasthani department opens at the university.

What we can verify

• Forced hospital shift: On Thursday, police removed Rewar from the protest site and admitted him to Jaipur’s SMS Hospital. Gandhi Nagar SHO Bhajan Lal said officers briefed Rewar that his health was deteriorating after several days without food and that he had to be shifted; he is under watch at the hospital. — Indian Express
• Day eight of the fast: Rewar, 26, is a second-year Master of Law student from Nagaur. Thursday was day eight of the hunger strike. Supporters climbed onto the ambulance as police packed him in. — Indian Express
• Two core demands: Restoration of students’ union elections in Rajasthan public universities, and a dedicated Rajasthani language department at RU. The New Indian Express reported elections have been suspended for about three years; Rewar has said they stopped in the last year of the previous Congress government and that the BJP government has not held them either. — New Indian Express, Indian Express
• CJP visit and three-month clock: Ranka visited Rewar on Tuesday, called the demands “just,” and said student-union polls are a democratic right. He gave the university three months to resolve the issues or face a push for Vice-Chancellor Prof Alpana Kateja’s resignation. — Indian Express, New Indian Express
• Political backing after the visit: Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, and former deputy CM Sachin Pilot publicly backed Rewar on Wednesday evening, according to The Indian Express. NSUI and ABVP have both called for restoring student-union elections. — Indian Express
• Parallel NSUI action: On Thursday, three NSUI-linked students climbed a water tank in Jaipur seeking restoration of student-union polls and the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over force used on students at Jantar Mantar. — Indian Express

What remains unverified

• Medical condition: No independent clinical bulletin on Rewar’s vitals or whether a drip was started against his written refusal is [unverified] beyond police and his own account.
• Scale of cane charge: How many officers, injuries, or FIRs from Thursday’s removal is [unverified] in the two outlets cited.
• CJP follow-through: Whether CJP will open a Rajasthan statewide front if the three-month window lapses is [unverified]; only Ranka’s public ultimatum is on record.