SC seeks response of Centre, UT of Ladakh within 10 days on plea against Wangchuk’s detention
The Supreme Court has fixed November 24 as the next date of hearing, wife of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk informed
The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought response of BJP government at the Centre and Ladakh administration on an amended petition against Sonam Wangchuk’s detention order within 10 days.
Wangchuk’s wife Gitanjali Angmo, who has filed the amended petition, said, “We have submitted a 300 page document that includes a 100 page petition and 200 annexures wherein we have rebutted point- by-point detention order of my husband.”
“The Supreme Court has given 10 days to the Centre and Ladakh administration to respond to our petition. Subsequently, a week’s time has been given to us for filing counter to their response,” she added.
Since 17 to 18 days will be consumed in these two processes, the Supreme Court has fixed November 24 as the next date of hearing, she informed.
Gitanjali further said that she will be meeting her jailed husband at Jodhpur central jail on Thursday. “Since the Centre has resumed talks with the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance, Sonam Wangchuk has asked us to stay firm on our two core demands of statehood and Sixth Schedule,” she said.
A bench of justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre and the UT of Ladakh, to file the response to the amended plea.
The bench also allowed senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who is representing Wangchuk, to file rejoinder, if any.
On October 15, the Apex Court had deferred the hearing following a plea by Gitanjali, who sought to file an amended petition with additional grounds for challenging the detention order of her husband climate activist Sonam Wangchuk.
Gitanjali recalled how some incidents that happened in the past one and a half year over statehood and Sixth Schedule, well before the September violence, were made grounds of Wangchuk’s detention order. She recalled how an old video of June this year was also made a ground of her husband’s detention.
“In June, when talks (with Centre) failed, my husband talked about statehood being a tough road ahead and if someone has to sacrifice his life for the cause, it would be Wangchuk. However, the detention order stated that he was inciting people of Ladakh for self-immolation,” she said.
She claimed that grounds stated in the detention order were flimsy and fabricated to frame her husband.
Wangchuk was detained under the stringent National Security Act (NSA) on September 26, two days after violent protests demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh left four people dead and nearly 100 injured in Leh town.
