Ladakh – Protest for Statehood

Why in News?

Recently, there was a  violent protests erupted in Leh city which led to the death of four people and injuries to around 150 people, including security personnel.

What is the background?

• Abrogation of Article 370 – The special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was read down by Parliament on August 5, 2019.
• Split of state – The State was split into two Union Territories  
  • J&K – With assembly
  • Ladakh – Without an Assembly.

• Apprehension of people – The fear of big businesses and conglomerates taking away land and jobs from the local people led to this demand.

As per the 2011 Census, the total population of Ladakh was 2,74,289.

What is the ongoing issue?

• Detain of protestors – On September 26, prominent educationist and climate activist of Ladakh, Sonam Wangchuk, was detained under the National Security Act (NSA), 1980 for disrupting public order.
• Hunger strike – On September 10, Mr. Wangchuk, on behalf of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), announced a 35-day hunger strike.
• They demanded the resumption of talks with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
• Demands of the protestors – They had 4 demands
  • Inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution (tribal status),
  • Statehood for ladakh
  • Separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil,
  • Filling of existing government vacancies.
• Formation of high powered committee – The government formed a High-Powered Committee (HPC) headed by Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai on January 2023.
• The HPS was formed as a result of campaigns by groups in Kargil and Leh demanding constitutional safeguards, protection of land, preservation of culture and demand for employment opportunities.
• The committee comprised members of LAB and KDA and civil society representatives, who rejected the HPC, saying only pro-government members appeared to have been picked.
• The HPC was reconstituted on November 30, 2023
• The terms of reference of the committee – It includes
  • Measures to protect the region’s unique culture and language taking into consideration its geographical location and strategic importance
  • To ensure protection of land and employment for the people of Ladakh
  • To discuss measures for inclusive development and employment generation in the region
  • To discuss measures related to the empowerment of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill District Councils of Leh and Kargil and to examine constitutional safeguards for the measures.
• Breakdown of talks – The talks between the members of the committee broke down in March 2024.
• On October 6, 2024, Mr. Wangchuk sat on an indefinite fast in Delhi to draw the government’s attention to their demands, following which the MHA agreed to resume talks.
• The HPC, including leaders from Leh and Kargil, met on December 3, 2024, followed by another meeting on January 15, 2025.
• The committee last met on May 27.
• The members also met Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence the following day.

What happened since the last round of talks?

• President’s notification – Following the meeting, on June 3, President Droupadi Murmu notified 4 Regulations for the Union Territory of Ladakh.
• New policies – The notification defined new policies on reservation, languages, domiciles and composition of hill councils for Ladakh.
• Reservation – The Regulations paved the way for 85% reservation for resident Ladakhis in government jobs.
• Rejection of the talks – The Ladakh groups allege that their core demands of Statehood and inclusion in the Sixth Schedule have not been met.

What is the government’s stand?

• Government’s assurance – Union Home Secretary on his visit to Ladakh on July 1 had assured the protestors a discussion on the 2 points.
  • The MHA had informed a parliamentary standing committee in 2022 that the objective for inclusion of a tribal population under the Sixth Schedule is to ensure its overall socio-economic development.
  • It said the UT administration had already been taking care of this aspect and that sufficient funds were being provided to Ladakh.
• Engagement with civil societies – After the violent protests, the MHA said in a statement that it had been actively engaged with LAB and KDA and a series of meetings were held.
• Increased reservation – The process of dialogue through this mechanism has yielded phenomenal results by increasing reservations for Ladakh’s Scheduled Tribe[s] from 45% to 84%.
• This also provides one-third reservations to women in the councils and declaring Bhoti and Purgi as official languages.
• With this process of recruitment, 1,800 posts opened up for tribals,” the MHA said.

Reference

The Hindu| Protest in Ladakh