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Ladakh groups defer foot march ahead of Sept 9 talks with Centre
The Kargil Democratic Alliance had announced a foot march from September 10 to 24 to mark the first anniversary of the September 24, 2025, violence in Leh
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The proposed Kargil-Leh foot march to press for statehood and other constitutional safeguards has been deferred in view of the Centre’s sub-committee meeting with Ladakh leaders on September 9.
The Kargil Democratic Alliance had announced a foot march from September 10 to 24 to mark the first anniversary of the September 24, 2025, violence in Leh, which left four people dead, more than 80 injured and 85 arrested.
Announcing the decision, Leh Apex Body (LAB) leader and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk said, “Since the Centre has fixed September 9 for talks, we have decided to defer the foot march. If September 9 talks are good, then we will also hold minimal programmes in September, but if the talks fail or there is an attempt to delay the process or if talks are not result-oriented then we will go full throttle with our agitation in September.”
Wangchuk said the meeting offered an opportunity for the Centre to hold meaningful and result-oriented talks, against the backdrop of the May 22 meeting and subsequent signing off the minutes of meeting at Leh on July 3.
The proposed march was being planned to highlight Ladakh’s long-pending demands, including statehood, constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule and other issues forming part of the region’s four-point agenda.
“Further, the two-week-long foot march was too long, and the people felt it to be infeasible. So, we decided to keep it a five-day affair in the run-up to September 24. We hope that we get support from across the nation. However, for now we look forward to the September 9 meeting and have suspended the march,” he added.
Former minister and LAB co-chairman, Chering Dorjay Lakrook, also said if ensuing talks fail, the agitation will be intensified.
“If some constructive talks are held bringing out positive results then it’s good. Otherwise, we will intensify our agitation. We will keep our people abreast with the programmes,” he added.
Lakrook also welcomed the withdrawal of cases against students booked during the Jantar Mantar protest but said that the cases related to September 24 violence last year in Leh should also be withdrawn.
The Ladakh administration has described the meeting as part of the ongoing dialogue aimed at strengthening democratic processes in the Union Territory.
Lakroor and Wangchuk made it clear that the deferment of the march should not be viewed as an end to the agitation.
The organisers had planned to conclude the march in Leh on September 24, coinciding with a candlelight vigil marking the first anniversary of the deaths during the September 2025 protests.
The Centre has called a sub-committee meeting in Delhi on September 9 with the KDA and LAB to discuss the unanimously agreed-upon minutes of the May 22 meeting.
So far, the Ladakh leaders have held three rounds of talks with the officials of the Minister of home affairs. On August 19, regional leaders met Union home ministry officials in Leh and handed over a list of “non-negotiable” demands. A day later, the administration withdrew cases against 25 people registered over the September 24, 2025, clashes.
The LAB and the KDA, the two civil society organisations spearheading Ladakh’s agitation, signed off on the minutes of the May 22 sub-committee meeting on July 3, following a three-hour meeting in Leh chaired by Ladakh chief secretary Ashish Kundra, after weeks of disagreement over a clause on officers’ performance appraisals.
A two-member panel comprising additional secretary Prashant Lokhande and Anurag Kumar, special director, IB, in-charge of J&K and Ladakh affairs, along with LAB and KDA, held talks for three hours on July 3.
Ladakh was created as a Union Territory without a legislative assembly on August 5, 2019, following the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir. Leaders have been protesting since then to demand statehood and constitutional safeguards. In 2023, the MHA formed a high-powered committee under minister of state for home Nityanand Rai, to address the region’s culture, language, and strategic interests.
