Ladakh-MHA dialogueset to resume on Oct 22
An eight member delegation of the union territory of Ladakh, including members of the region’s two main organisations—the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)—along with Ladakh MP Mohd Haneefa Jan and lawyer Haji Mustafa, will be travelling to New Delhi for talks with home ministry officials
Crucial talks between the Centre and Ladakh representatives, which were called off nearly three weeks ago, are set to resume on October 22, people aware of the matter said on Saturday, raising hopes of an end to a months-long of deadlock.
An eight member delegation of the union territory of Ladakh, including members of the region’s two main organisations—the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)—along with Ladakh MP Mohd Haneefa Jan and lawyer Haji Mustafa, will be travelling to New Delhi for talks with home ministry officials.
The delegation will also comprise of LAB chairman Thupstan Chhewang, Chering Dorjay Lakrook and Ashraf Barch from Leh while representatives from KDA will be Asgar Ali Karbalai, Sajjad Kargili and Qamar Ali Akhoon while Kargil MP Haji Hanifa will participate in the upcoming talks.
According to LAB co-chairperson Chering Dorjay Lakruk, the team will meet a ministry of home Affairs (MHA) sub-committee in Delhi, with the focus on restoring statehood and securing safeguards under the Constitution’s Sixth Schedule, which provides a degree of autonomy.
The development comes after the Centre on Friday announced a judicial probe headed by a retired Supreme Court judge into the deaths of the four persons in Leh on September 24 during violent protests.
LAB co-chairperson Chering Dorjey said that a representative from the home ministry in Delhi visited Ladakh yesterday following which the date for the talks was finalised. “We have agreed to the talks after the centre announced a judicial probe into the September 24 killings which was our main demand. If there is some positive development in the upcoming talks, the next round of discussions will be with the High-Powered Committee led by Nityanand Rai ,” said Dorjay.
“There will be a brief gap between the two meetings to allow us to consult with the people of Ladakh,” Dorjay said.
Four people were killed and nearly 100, including police and paramilitary personnel, were injured on Sep 24 after protesters went on rampage vandalising buildings, setting a BJP office and a police vehicle on fire while police and CRPF resorted to tear gas shelling and opening fire. The clashes had erupted over statehood and sixth schedule demands on the day-15 of a hunger strike led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been booked under NSA and incarcerated in Jodhpur jail. The Centre has blamed activist Sonam Wangchuk for instigating the violence.
The Union Territory of Ladakh was created on August 5, 2019, after the Centre effectively abrogated Article 370, which used to bestow special status on Jammu and Kashmir, and split the erstwhile state into two UTs – J&K with a legislative assembly and Ladakh without one.
Since then, a string of protests has rocked Ladakh and had echoes in Delhi. In February 2024, thousands protested in Delhi, Leh and other parts of Ladakh, demanding statehood and safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
In 2023, the Union home ministry formed a high-powered committee under minister of state for home, Nityanand Rai, to discuss ways to protect Ladakh’s unique culture and language, considering its location and strategic importance. The panel, which included the members of the LAB and KDA, deliberated on protections for land and employment, the empowerment of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils of Leh and Kargil, and other constitutional safeguards.
