Ladakh observes strike after no headway on restoration of statehood, 6th Schedule demands

Srinagar: As the deadlock between the Centre and leaders of civil society groups of Ladakh over granting status of the Sixth Schedule in the Constitution and statehood to the cold desert region continues, a strike was observed in Leh on Wednesday.

The leaders of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) representing several social, religious, political and student organisations of Leh and Kargil, held negotiations over the issue with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and a sub-committee formed to look into the demands in New Delhi.

The LAB and KDA demand statehood for Ladakh, inclusion of the Union Territory in the 6th Schedule of the Constitution, restoration of statehood, separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil districts and the setting up of an exclusive public service commission for the high-altitude region.

The 6th Schedule guarantees protections to the land and a nominal autonomy for the country’s tribal areas.

However, following the breakdown of the talks on Tuesday, various religious organisations in Leh called for Ladakh bandh on Wednesday.

LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjey Lakruk, who was part of the meeting in New Delhi, said that the MHA wanted to implement some parts of the 6th Schedule indirectly, “while we insisted on its direct implementation besides the restoration of statehood”.

He said that the deadlock prevailed on the demands of statehood and 6th Schedule. Reports said that a rally was taken in Leh on Wednesday against the Centre’s reluctance to accept the demands of people of the Union territory.

Sonam Wangchuk, an education reformer and Magsaysay award winner, started a hunger strike in protest against the failure of talks, reports added.

The discontent is not new as LAB and KDA have been fighting for statehood and safeguards to land rights and jobs for the locals since 2020.

The current protests can be traced back to August 2019, when the Centre downgraded J&K from a state to two Union territories – Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir.

With the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) likely to be implemented in the next 10 days after the announcement of Lok Sabha elections, it is unlikely that any viable solution between the Centre and the Ladakh bodies will arrive soon for the strategically important region.