Leh:

With the Ladakh administration imposing prohibitory orders banning rallies on Sunday and a 24-hour reduction in internet speed, the Leh-based Apex Body said it has no intention of violating laws and hoped it will be allowed to carry out its proposed ‘border march’.

The Apex Body, along with the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), is spearheading the agitation to demand statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

The Apex Body announced the ‘border (Pashmina) march’ to Changthang to highlight the condition of grazers, who are allegedly losing prime pasture land to huge industrial plants to the south and Chinese encroachments to the north.

In an apparent move aimed at countering the march, the District Magistrate (DM) of Leh Santosh Sukhadeve on Friday ordered the imposition of CrPC section 144 on April 7 and directed that no procession, rally or march should be taken without his prior approval.

He said the Leh senior superintendent of police has reported that there were reliable inputs indicating a possible breach of peace and public tranquillity in the district.

“No one shall use the vehicle-mounted or other loudspeakers without prior approval from the competent authority. No public gathering without prior approval of the competent authority shall be allowed. No one shall make any statements which have the potential to disturb communal harmony and public tranquillity and which may lead to law-and-order problems in the district,” the DM’s order said.

“All persons shall ensure that they follow the Model Code of Conduct and that all the activities are according to the law,” it added.

In a separate order, Additional Director General of Police of Ladakh S D Singh Jamwal ordered the scaling down of internet speed and mobile data services of 3G, 4G and 5G connections and public 5G Wi-Fi facilities to 2G within a 10-kilometre radius of Leh city from 6 pm on April 6 for 24 hours.

The DM of Leh, in another order, prohibited the posting or sharing such messages that have the potential to disturb communal harmony, peace and tranquillity and may lead to a law-and-order situation in the district.

“It shall be the responsibility of the admins of WhatsApp groups or social media platforms to monitor and filter such content immediately,” the order read.

The Leh Apex Body (LAB) termed the restrictions ahead of its proposed border march an “overreaction” by the administration and said it has no intention of violating the law.

“We have been holding a chain hunger strike for the past 31 days and we feel such a reaction is the result of some misunderstanding,” climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, flanked by LAB leader Chering Dorjay, told reporters here.

Wangchuk, who held a hunger strike for 21 days till March 26, said they strongly believe in peace and peaceful ways to highlight their demands, including those connected with the prevailing condition of the Pashmina grazers.

“If they stop us from marching ahead, it shows the government has something to hide and they do not want the real picture to reach the outside world… we are hopeful that the administration will allow our peaceful march if they have nothing to hide,” he said.

Wangchuk added that a meeting of stakeholders will be held to decide the future course of action within the next couple of days.

Dorjay said they will go ahead with the march and it will be peaceful.

Wangchuk also alleged that the police administration was calling volunteers to the local police stations and threatening them.

“Our request is not to spread unrest in the name of peace. This is a very sensitive region and we always cared for the country,” he added. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Centre’s talks with Ladakh’s civil society leaders failed after a six-member delegation from the Union Territory met with Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi today. Former BJP MP Thupstan Chhewang, who is also the chief of the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), has been leading the talks.

“We met Amit Shah at his residence but he categorically said that neither statehood nor guarantee within the Sixth Schedule can be granted and that’s why talks failed,” Senior Vice President of Ladakh Buddhist Association Chering Dorjay Lakruk told NDTV.

According to Mr Lakruk, they came to Delhi on the Home Ministry’s invite for the third round of talks. “We met Home Ministry officials initially and then went to meet Amit Shah at his residence,” he said.

“The meeting with the Home Minister did not bring any positive outcome. So the leaders of Ladakh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance will now consult the people on the future course of action,” a statement released by the sub-committee members read.

In a press statement, the Home Ministry said, “Amit Shah assured the delegation that under the leadership of PM Modi, the government is committed to providing necessary Constitutional safeguards to the Union Territory of Ladakh. He assured that the High Powered Committee on Ladakh has been discussing the modalities to provide such Constitutional safeguards.”

“The Home Minister expressed that the consultative mechanism established through this High Powered Committee should continue to engage on issues such as measures to protect the region’s unique culture and language, protection of land and employment, inclusive development and employment generation, empowerment of LAHDCs and examine constitutional safeguards for positive outcomes,” it added.

Last week, Ladakh’s prominent climate activist Sonam Wangchuk said he would fast unto death in sub-zero temperatures if the talks with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) officials fail.

He said that the government under the “influence of the industrial lobby” does not want to ensure constitutional safeguards for Ladakh.

Earlier, the MHA had agreed to examine the legality of granting statehood to Ladakh and its inclusion under the Sixth Schedule.

The MHA had also constituted a high-powered committee to address the grievances and demands of the people of Ladakh last year. The committee led by Nityanand Rai, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, held its first meeting on December 4.

The Ladakh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance have jointly demanded statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the Sixth Schedule – giving it a tribal status, job reservations for the locals, and a parliamentary seat each for Leh and Kargil.

The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 of the Constitution protects tribal populations, allowing for the creation of autonomous development councils to frame laws on land, public health, and agriculture. As of now, 10 autonomous councils exist in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.

Interestingly, the BJP is rallying its campaign for the 2024 elections on how the abrogation of Article 370 has benefitted both Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh. “But if they give in to this demand just ahead of elections, it will boomerang against them,” a senior official explained.

According to him, with the latest developments, they might lose the Ladakh seat. “They can afford to lose one seat but if the narrative fails then it will not only cost them both seats in Jammu but may also affect their vote share in other seats as well,” he added.

Ladakh was turned into a Union Territory without a Legislative Assembly after the Centre ended the special constitutional position of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and split it into two Union Territories – J&K and Ladakh – on August 5, 2019.

In the last four years, Ladakh has shut down on multiple occasions amid fears of disempowerment of locals and overreach of bureaucracy.