Will start fresh protest if no assurance from Centre in week on Ladakh, says Sonam

Sept 9 meeting was an attempt to defer our foot march, says Sonam Wangchuk, Leh Apex Body leader and climate activist

The leaders of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), spearheading a protracted agitation for a democratically elected system with a legislature and constitutional safeguards, have given the Centre a week to issue an assurance and stop taking big decisions on Ladakh until an elected government takes over.

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk (PTI)

Addressing the media in New Delhi, LAB leader and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk also threatened fresh agitation from September 19 to 24 if the government doesn’t give an assurance on all the issues related to Ladakh.

The ultimatum comes hours after Wangchuk and other leaders expressed ‘disappointment’ over the progress of the talks held by the MHA sub-committee in New Delhi on Wednesday.

“We are somewhat disappointed because nothing concrete came out of the meeting on Wednesday. Whatever was taken up at the meeting was nothing but reiteration of decisions taken on May 22, and we felt the meeting was just a time pass and to sabotage our ‘foot march’ from September 10 to September 24. That’s why the meeting was fixed on September 9,” Wangchuk said at Ladakh House.

Wangchuk said it would be ideal that the Ladakh UT was first handed over to a duly elected government and then decisions were taken.

“If they (present UT administration under LG) keep taking big decisions, then what will be left for the elected assembly?” he asked.

He bluntly said that the September 9 meeting was merely a tactic to buy time and to sabotage the September 10-foot march.

Wangchuk also expressed regret over an elusive inquiry commission report that was set up under a retired judge last year to probe the Leh violence of September 24 that left four civilians, including a retired soldier, dead, over 80 injured and over 85 arrested.

“Even after one year, there are no results to date, and we are surprised because by now we would have come to know who committed excesses and what the police lapses were,” he said.

Former minister and co-chairman of the LAB, Ladakh MP Mohammad Haneefa Jan said that for the past five to six years, LAB and KDA were struggling for constitutional safeguards in Ladakh.

“In this context, talks with the government are on. In May this year, MHA officials reached a unanimous consensus with KDA and LAB wherein a new democratically elected governance model and constitutional safeguards under Article 371 K were agreed upon in principle. After September 24 last year, we felt that the home minister, MHA officials and IB officials want peace and development in Ladakh, but Wednesday’s meeting was not up to our expectations because we were anticipating a draft proposal from the MHA,” Jan said.

The MP further said that they had prepared for the discussion on the draft proposal.

“Much to our dismay, only an assurance was given yesterday that the draft will be prepared in a time-bound manner and presented in the coming winter session in the parliament,” he added.

The Ladakh MP also had a word of caution for the UT administration and advised it to desist from taking big decisions on its own.

The co-chairman of the KDA, Asgar Ali Karbalai, also echoed similar views.

“At yesterday’s meeting, we anticipated that since minutes of the May 22 meeting and non-negotiable demands have been agreed upon, a draft proposal would be presented by the MHA, but unfortunately it didn’t happen and has now been deferred to the first week of October,” he said.

“We don’t want to be compelled to go on agitation, strikes, sit-ins and hunger strikes. Till the time the draft proposal is announced, the UT administration should refrain from taking major decisions on Ladakh. Therefore, we demand a complete draft on executive, legislature, finance and constitutional safeguards,” he said.