Ladakh announces Dec 4 hill council polls amid Kargil strike, Leh boycott

Opposition mounts across UT over delimitation concerns, unmet policy promises, and severe winter conditions

Srinagar: The Ladakh state election commission on Tuesday notified December 4 as the polling date for the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) elections, with the entire process scheduled for completion by December 8.

The deadline for filing nominations is set for November 17, followed by scrutiny on November 18 and a withdrawal deadline of November 20. Polling will take place from 8am to 5pm on December 4.

State election commissioner Sudhanshu Pandey announced the timeline on Tuesday under Rule 12 of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (Election) Rules, 2026. The notification applies across all eight newly configured districts of the Union Territory—comprising Leh and Kargil as well as the newly created council divisions of Drass, Zanskar, Sankoo, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang.

According to the SEC schedule, the deadline for filing nominations is set for November 17, followed by scrutiny on November 18 and a withdrawal deadline of November 20. Polling will take place from 8am to 5pm on December 4.

The council poll announcement follows earlier notifications issued by chief electoral officer Rahul Sharma for local municipal and panchayat elections. General elections for the municipal committees of Leh and Kargil, along with panchayat halqas across the UT, are scheduled to run concurrently on November 21, concluding by November 30.

The electoral rollout has triggered political backlash across the region. Kargil observed a complete shutdown on Tuesday to protest holding council elections during extreme winter conditions. Shops, commercial establishments, and private offices remained shut in Kargil town as well as outlying areas such as Drass, Sankoo, and Zanskar. Public transport remained off the roads under a security blanket of reinforced police forces deployed as a precautionary measure. Organised by the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)—an umbrella group of political, religious, trade, and civil society organisations—the shutdown exempted medical facilities, water supply, and school buses. The KDA also scheduled an evening “Save Democracy” candlelight march against the timing of the elections, alleged delimitation irregularities, and what they termed the erosion of democratic rights.

Three major organisations—the Ladakh Nambardar Association, the Ladakh Gompa Association, and the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA)—announced a boycott of both the panchayat and municipal committee elections.

LBA president Chering Dorjay Lakrook, who also heads the Leh Apex Body (LAB), cited dissatisfaction with the newly finalised 100-constituency delimitation process, unfulfilled promises regarding liquor policy reforms following protests by women’s groups, and a lack of faith in the administration’s sincerity.

Ladakh Lok Sabha MP Mohmad Haneefa Jan has written to lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena urging a postponement of all local body and council polls to spring (April–May). Jan warned that sub-zero temperatures (ranging from -20°C to -25°C), heavy snowfall, road blockages, and seasonal migration of senior citizens, traders, and students to warmer regions like Jammu, Srinagar, and Delhi risk disenfranchising a large portion of the electorate.