Leh slowly limping back to normalcy

Police said that the situation has improved in Leh significantly eight days after protests by youth, in support of statehood and sixth schedule of constitution, had turned violent

The situation is slowly limping back in Leh with curfew relaxation extended to eight hours on Wednesday.

Security personnel patrol a deserted road after relaxation in curfew ended, in Leh on Wednesday. (PTI)

Police said that the situation has improved in Leh significantly eight days after protests by youth, in support of statehood and sixth schedule of constitution, had turned violent.

“The situation was completely normal as restrictions were lifted from 10 am to 6 pm. Everything is open now, including shops and restaurants, while traffic movement is also going on,” said incharge additional superintendent of police Rigzin Sangdup, in the evening.

The clashes erupted over statehood demands on the Day 15 of a hunger strike led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been booked under NSA and sent to Jodhpur jail.

The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance(KDA) have been spearheading an agitation for the last four years pressing for their demands on statehood and extension of Sixth Schedule to Ladakh after the abrogation of Article 370 and the region split from Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.

Ladakh lieutenant governor Kavinder Gupta told PTI that Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) should reconsider their decision to stay away from talks with the Centre. The LG said a magisterial probe has already been announced “and it will start very soon”.

“The central government had invited them (LAB and KDA) for talks and they should have gone for prior consultations… Any issue can be settled only by sitting across the table. Only through talks, things become possible,” he said.

The LG also rebuffed claims by LBA that the administration including CRPF was responsible for the worsening of the situation. “The administration has not made the situation worse, nor did we want it to be like this. What led to the violence is a matter of investigation,” he said.

The administration wants everyone, including youths and religious bodies, to come forward so that we can sit with them and solve all the issues that are on their mind.

Terming the incidents of violence on September 24 as “tragic and unfortunate”, Gupta said they should not have happened in the first place.

He said that the administration imposed some restrictions under section 163 of BNSS to improve the situation and ordered the closure of schools and colleges as a precautionary measure. “The restrictions were initially relaxed for four hours on Tuesday and later extended by three more hours. The restrictions were eased from this morning to evening so that the daily routine of the people is not hindered,” he said.

On the criticism over the NSA being slapped on Wangchuk, the LG said, “This is a matter of central government. They (MHA) will talk about it, as I am looking at local issues.”

On Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the government on the handling of the Ladakh situation, he said, “The country knows what Rahul is saying. He is trying to instigate the people and vitiate the atmosphere in the country.”

“His hand is behind farmers’ agitation and similar other protests. He should concentrate more on his own rather than making any attempt to disturb the atmosphere in Ladakh,” he said.