Achi news desk-
Renowned Ladakhi educationist and environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk has been on hunger strike since March 6th. 16 days have passed since then. The temperature in Ladakh is currently dropping below 0 degrees. The hunger strikes happen to raise the the demands of the people from ladakh. The demand is to protect their identity and their constitutional status.
Thousands gather in support of Wangchuk under the open sky at Leh’s Nawang Dorje Memorial Park where this demonstration is being held.
Thousands gather in support of Wangchuk under the open air at Leh’s Nawang Dorje Memorial Park where this demonstration is being held. On February 19, 2024, there were discussions between a representative group and the government. Before that, the central government had also formed a powerful committee.
The rounds of talks took place between February 19 and 23. Another round of talks was held on March 4 but no consensus was reached. On March 6, several organizations in Leh had called for the shutdown of Ladakh. Since then, Sonam Wangchuk has been continuing her hunger strike and demonstrations have been going on. During this period, this demonstration has received support from two major socio-political organizations here – the ABL (Apex Body Leh) and the KDA (Kargil Democratic Alliance).
Break down the key requirements
These protesters have four demands. The first demand is that Ladakh should be given the status of a legislative assembly like Jammu and Kashmir. The second demand is to include Ladakh under the 6th Schedule of the Constitution. The third demand is to increase one more parliamentary seat in Ladakh and the fourth demand is to bring the Public Service Commission to Ladakh.
Why a legislative assembly for Ladakh?
Let’s discuss each of the four requirements one by one. The first demand is that when Article 370 became ineffective on August 5, 2019, Ladakh was made a union territory without a legislative assembly. Now, these people want their own legislative assembly. Regarding this, Sonam Wangchuk herself says that since independence, the demand of the people of Ladakh is to separate them from Jammu and Kashmir because the people of Ladakh always felt that their role in this relationship had become that of a younger brother and it was their interests are affected.
Sonam further adds ‘States have always been formed on a linguistic or cultural basis. I understand that India has now become a mature democracy, a confident nation. So I don’t think there is any problem with giving a state to Ladakh.’ On August 5, 2019, Ladakh was separated from Jammu and Kashmir but did not have a legislative assembly. Ladakh is very unique culturally and geographically, 97% of the population is tribal. This is the basic basis of their argument for statehood.
The 6th schedule and its relevance
Another demand relates to the 6th Schedule. Sonam Wangchuk quotes BJP’s 2019 election manifesto which promised Constitutional safeguards for Ladakh under the 6th Schedule. There has been no progress on this promise since then. Under Articles 244 and 275 of the Constitution, special provisions have been made for tribal areas. The tribal areas of four states in the north-east – Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram – are administered under the 6th Schedule.
Under this, there is provision to form autonomous district councils in these areas. These areas have their own legal, judicial and administrative powers, which means they can make their own laws. This schedule also allows multiple autonomous councils to be formed if there are different tribes within a district, or one council per autonomous district. This council has full authority to make rules and laws for the area. In simple language, this means giving additional constitutional powers or special status to tribal population areas of a state for protection purposes.
The demand for a 6th Schedule in Ladakh is driven by the protestors’ belief that once they are included, activities like mining will not take place there. Their argument is that industrialists want to exploit the hilly regions, and to protect Ladakh from this, the special powers of the 6th Schedule are needed. This would allow the autonomous Ladakh council to make rules to prevent activities such as mining.
Representation requirements and public services commission
There is also a demand for representation. Protesters think their local politicians have no say in Policy. The policies are decided in Delhi and implemented in Ladakh. The total population of Ladakh is just over 3 lakh, it has two districts Leh and Kargil, but only one Lok Sabha seat. The people of Ladakh want one more seat to be added. If that happens, it will help strengthen their demand for a legislature as well. But is it possible to increase one Lok Sabha seat? In a state like UP which has 80 MPs, we see that one MP is from a place like Ladakh. In the last session some MPs were expelled, which shows the value of one MP.
An MP for a region like Ladakh, whose territory extends over an area of ​​59,000 sq km, would face geographical challenges in covering the entire area with just one seat.
An MP for a region like Ladakh, whose territory extends over an area of ​​59,000 sq km, would face geographical challenges in covering the entire area with just one seat. Protesters are of the opinion that the demand for at least two MPs seems justified so that people have some representation there at the central level where policies are formulated because they claim that in Ladakh today, the circumstances political so much because the policy making process ignores the uniqueness of Ladakh.
As they say, a central state jacket cannot be implemented uniformly across all the tribal areas, the needs of each geographical area are not the same. Implementation of centralized tribal policy in Ladakh creates many problems. Protesters emphasize that they need two MPs – one for political representation of the people of Ladakh, and the second to help ministers at the central level to understand this uniqueness.
Let’s understand the fourth demand. Protesters say that earlier Ladakh students used to apply to the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission, but after Ladakh became a separate UT in 2019, gazetted officers were not recruited here till now. Before separation of Ladakh, people from Ladakh used to be recruited through J&K Public Service Commission, but that is not happening now after becoming a separate UT. That is why Ladakh wants its own Public Service Commission.
Priyanka Gandhi has recently supported the demands of the people of Ladakh, saying that it is the government’s responsibility to fulfill these demands.
Priyanka Gandhi has recently supported the demands of the people of Ladakh, saying that it is the government’s responsibility to fulfill these demands. On the other hand, the spokesperson of the BJP in Ladakh says that the way things are being presented is not true. It was the BJP that made Ladakh a separate UT from J&K. Work is going on in Ladakh on many other issues as well. Regarding the demand to be a state, it is not possible at the moment because, according to the spokesperson, they do not have sufficient resources to become a state.
Wangchunk’s appeal and the way forward
With unwavering determination, Wangchuk released a video at the end of the 16th day of his hunger strike and addressed his appeal directly to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His words carry the weight of countless Ladakhis who endure harsh climates, as he begs Modi to hear his message and asks everyone to amplify it so that the authorities can notice it.
In the video Wangchuk portrays a moving picture of the Ladakh environment, where protesters seek solace under the open air in chilly temperatures. It underlines the urgency of the situation, where the temperature drops to -10 to -15 degrees Celsius, highlighting the urgent need to act very soon.
Wangchuk, through his appeal, reminds of the past promises made by the Bharatiya Janata Party. It reminds Modi of commitments made during election campaigns, promising to protect Ladakh’s environment, and to protect its indigenous communities enshrined in constitutional reforms. However, he laments the stark reality of unmet expectations and growing disillusionment among Ladakhis.
As we approach the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, we can only hope that the situation in Ladakh, which is blessed with natural beauty and guards the borders of our country, will improve soon for the benefit of the citizens and local circumstances through constitutional methods.
