LEH: Three weeks after a peaceful agitation turned violent in Ladakh on September 24, dozens of those arrested continue to face what lawyers and observers describe as systematic harassment by police, even after courts have granted them bail.
Approximately 75-80 people were detained in the aftermath of the September 24 incident in Leh, including prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk, who remains under the National Security Act in Jodhpur. While about 49-50 detainees have secured bail, their ordeal appears far from over.
The mass arrests came after violent clashes on September 24, 2025, when some youth-led demonstrators broke away from a peaceful hunger strike and allegedly set fire to the local BJP office in Leh, Ladakh's capital. Security forces responded with live fire, killing four people including a veteran soldier and injuring dozens more. Within days, authorities had rounded up more than 80 individuals, including peaceful protesters who had no connection to the violence.
Despite court orders releasing them, bailed detainees are being repeatedly summoned to police stations for interrogation, according to local lawyers. "They are summoned early in the morning and virtually detained till the evening," said Mohd. Shafi Lasu, a lawyer representing some of the accused.
The practice has raised concerns about police overreach and disregard for judicial orders. Of the original group arrested, 25 remain in judicial custody and approximately four are still in police custody.
An FIR under Section 144 was initially lodged, with charges including wrongful protest assembly, rioting, and attempt to murder. The court granted bail to 26 people first, then 12 others, but the police summons have continued unabated, triggering both anger and fear.
On October 15, the government announced that all curfew and internet restrictions that were imposed in the wake of the violence were lifted and that the situation in Ladakh was normal. Locals say this is at odds with the intimidating tactics being employed.
Though there has been an effective calm since September 24, there is a seething anger over the way the protests were handled. Many admit the violent protests were unjustified, but they deem that the action is hugely disproportionate.
Four people were killed in police firing, says a Leh-based Ladakhi activist, angry that nobody is even talking about them. “There were some people who turned violent on September 24, and it all happened suddenly…... but others were out there peacefully,” he says, suggesting that some of those killed and injured by bullets and pellet shots “were peaceful”.
“Who provoked and disrupted the peaceful agitation?” he questions and adds, “That is yet to be probed.”
Lawyer Lasu echoes this view noting that some of those arrested were attempting to restrain the crowd. "In fact, some of those arrested were trying to stop the mob," he said.
He also questioned the severity of the charges against those detained, particularly "attempt to murder." There is no evidence of that, he says.
"It was a spur of the moment that peaceful protest turned violent – it wasn't premeditated," said one local on conditions of anonymity. "How do they ascribe an intention to a mob that suddenly got swayed by emotion?"
Locals maintain the police action was unjustified. Soon after the incident, former BJP MP, Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, told the media that the “police firing had shaken public trust.”
On October 17, in a belated move, the government has ordered a judicial enquiry into the firing incident to quell public anger.
The Ministry of Home Affairs announced on October 17, 2025, that it has ordered a judicial inquiry into the circumstances that led to the violence and the deaths of four individuals. The inquiry will be conducted by Justice B.S. Chauhan, a former judge of the Supreme Court of India, assisted by retired District and Sessions Judge Mohan Singh Parihar as Judicial Secretary and IAS officer Tushar Anand as Administrative Secretary.
The government notification stated that a "serious law and order situation was created in Leh town resulting in police action leading to the unfortunate death of four individuals" and that an FIR had been registered under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
The probe will examine the events leading to the violence, the police response, and the circumstances surrounding the four deaths. Locals, however, question the sincerity of this inquiry while people are still detained and being harassed.
As Ladakhis try to make sense of what happened on September 24 and its aftermath, what they can’t get over is the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk over “bizarre accusations”, the celebrated innovator who was arrested on September 26 under the National Security Act, a preventive detention law that allows imprisonment without trial for up to one year. Authorities transported him approximately 1,600 kilometers from his home to a jail in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, deliberately distancing him from his community and support network.
Wangchuk faces charges of "anti-national" activities and conspiring to overthrow the government, despite being engaged in peaceful hunger strike activity at the time of his arrest.
The charges are “flimsy and baseless”, said Lasu. “The case will fall and Wangchuk will be released,” he adds with confidence.
But such actions, say leaders from the region, are alienating the people. “The precarious situation at the borders, the unfolding ecological impact of flawed policies, and lack of representation are already making Ladakhis insecure. Instilling fear through repressive actions will be even more dangerous,” he warned.
While three youth leaders of the Ladakh Apex Body secured bail this week, several prominent figures remain incarcerated. These include Daldyan Namgyal, former MLA from Nubra and ex-BJP member, two Congress councillors, Jigmet Rabstan, president of the Ladakh Buddhist Association youth wing, and Imtiyaz Hussain, president of the Anjuman-e-Imannia youth wing.
Local residents and observers warn that the continued detention and post-bail harassment could backfire, further destabilising the already tense situation in Ladakh. "Instead of normalising the situation in Ladakh, the perpetuation of detention and harassment policy even after bails is going to aggravate the situation," said one local source.
The region has witnessed growing anger, disillusionment, and a sense of alienation in recent months, sentiments that observers fear will only deepen if authorities continue their current approach to handling the September 24 incident and its aftermath.
The crackdown against locals has already had a devastating psychological effect on Ladakh's community. Most tragically, Stanzin Dorje, a local businessman in his late 30s who had participated in the peaceful hunger strike alongside Wangchuk, died by suicide on October 2.
Sajad Kargili, a core member of the Kargil Democratic Alliance, speaking to media, had earlier warned that framing Ladakhi leaders as "anti-nationals" amounts to playing with fire. "Ladakh is a sensitive, border region near China and Pakistan, and it is extremely important to keep people on board," he said. "With this iron-fist approach, the government is alienating the people of Ladakh, and there is growing mistrust among the people now."
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