Internet services snapped in Leh; prohibitory orders in Kargil; LAB rejects ‘foreign hand’ in violence, demand judicial probe
Amid uncertainty over talks, 7 Ladakh leaders may hold pre-HPC meet talks on Sept 29
Arteev Sharma
Jammu: In fast-turning developments, climate activist-cum-education reformist Sonam Wangchuk was on Friday arrested under the stringent National Security Act (NSA), two days after violent protests over statehood and constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule left four persons, including an ex-serviceman, dead and over 90 injured in Ladakh.
Wangchuk, who was scheduled to address a press conference in Leh later in the day, was picked up from his village by a team of Ladakh Police led by DGP S. D. Singh Jamwal and immediately shifted to Jodhpur jail in Rajasthan.
The Ladakh administration also snapped mobile internet in Leh district and extended curfew in Leh town. Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was imposed in Kargil.
Wangchuk’s arrest came a day after the Union Home Ministry cancelled the FCRA licence of Wangchuk-founded Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), citing alleged financial irregularities.
At the scheduled press conference, Leh Apex Body (LAB) leaders admitted the protests had spiralled out of control but strongly denied any “foreign hand.”
Demanding a judicial probe into Wednesday’s violence, LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjay Lakrook accused police and CRPF personnel of firing indiscriminately on demonstrators without making any attempt to control the mob using other means, such as use of water cannons or firing warning shots. “Nearly 95 per cent of the injured have bullet or pellet wounds. This was excessive use of force,” he said.
Rejecting Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta’s claims that “foreign elements” fuelled the unrest, Lakrook said, “He (LG) said there is a foreign hand behind the violence. Some claim the Congress was involved, while others allege Sonam Wangchuk provoked the youth. For us, these are false narratives. What actually happened was a protest in support of genuine demands of the youth, who were frustrated”.
“The protestors were mostly unemployed and poor young people. Not a single youth from wealthy families or hoteliers participated in the protest. We don’t want to attach any label or narrative to it. It was simply the anger of the youth, who felt no one was listening to them. They tried to express that anger through protest, which unfortunately turned violent,” he said.
Lakrook added, “To justify their claim, they are saying that people from Doda in Jammu region, Nepal, Tibet and Bihar were among those injured…. This shows that they were not part of the protest. These people were bystanders. Nowadays, the population of outsiders is more in Leh. If you shoot blindly, the outsiders can also get hurt,” he said.
Meanwhile, uncertainty looms large over proposed talks between Ladakh leaders and MHA on October 6 following the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk.
Asked whether the arrest of Wangchuk would an impact on dialogue process, Lakrook said, “We will discuss the issue with our leaders and take a call accordingly. Nothing has been decided as yet”.
Earlier, he, however, said seven leaders from Ladakh including three each of LAB (Thupstan Chhewang, Chering Dorjay and Ashraf Ali) and KDA (Qamar Ali Akhoon, Asgar Karbalai and Sajjad Kargili) and local Member of Parliament Haji Hanifa Jan will initiate dialogue with MHA officials from September 29 ahead of the crucial meeting of High Powered Committee (HPC) in New Delhi on October 6.
“The funeral of the people who lost lives in violence will be performed on September 28 and September 29. After attending the funeral, we will leave for New Delhi to hold a meeting with MHA officials. We will ask them that there are now two major demands of Ladakh people—Statehood and Sixth Schedule. We will also request to prepone the October 6 meeting to fast track the dialogue. We will seek their proposal as to what they can offer us in lieu of our demands so that we can prepare ourselves for HPC meeting,” Lakrook said.
Sources said the meeting is scheduled to be chaired by the Joint Secretary, Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh Affairs department in MHA.
Meanwhile, an uneasy calm continued to prevail in the region as curfew remained in force for the third consecutive day in Leh with no untoward incident being reported from anywhere in the UT.
The curfew was clamped on Wednesday evening after widespread violence resulted in the deaths of protesters demanding advancing talks with the Centre on their demand for statehood and extension of the Sixth Schedule of Constitution to Ladakh. More than 50 persons were detained following the clashes, while strict restrictions under prohibitory orders banning assembly of five or more persons also remained in force in other major towns of the UT, including Kargil. A high-level team from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has arrived in Leh to review the situation.
Wangchuk’s arrest has drawn strong reactions from the opposition leaders, who blamed the Central government’s handling of the situation.
In a strong reaction, his wife, Gitanjali Angmo, accused the government of spreading a “false narrative” aimed at tarnishing his image. “He was treated like a criminal without any reason,” Angmo said, alleging that their house was ransacked by police. She also criticised the government for “stooping to this level” to damage the reputation of a respected innovator.
“Let them not spread false narratives as they are doing,” she said, referring to the BJP, as she questioned the saffron party’s principles, stating, “They are not Hindus in any way. The BJP is not Hindu because its foundation is falsehood”.
Some opposition parties alleged that the arrest “clearly exposes the government’s witch-hunting agenda” and a “policy of repression against dissent”.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah termed the arrest “unfortunate,” accusing the BJP-led Centre of backtracking on the promises made to secure public participation in the 2020 Hill Council elections.
He said the Centre’s actions were a betrayal of a commitment to the people of Ladakh.
In a post on X, Congress general secretary in-charge communications, Jairam Ramesh, said, “The Indian National Congress condemns the arrest of noted environmentalist and educationist Sonam Wangchuk under the National Security Act.” This has been done to divert attention and responsibility from the BJP’s “abysmal failure” to maintain law and order and ensure security of life and property in the Union Territory of Ladakh, Ramesh claimed.
“The crux of the issue is that the BJP has deceived the people of Ladakh for years. It promised the region Sixth Schedule status in the 2020 Leh Hill Council elections but has gone back on that promise with a vengeance,” Ramesh said.
