SRINAGAR: Over a hundred people from Ladakh are marching on foot to New Delhi to “remind” the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government of the promises to provide constitutional safeguards for the region.
The ‘Delhi Chalo Padyatra’ was initiated by the Leh Apex Body (LAB). This group has been leading the agitation against the central government to push for their demands following the creation of a separate Union Territory in August 2019.
The march, led by renowned innovator and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, has attracted over 100 volunteers. LAB chairman Thupstan Chhewang officially flagged off the yatra from NDS Memorial Park in Leh. Several participants from Kargil have also joined the march.
The people of Ladakh are up in arms against New Delhi for not addressing their four key demands which include, a full-fledged statehood for Ladakh, constitutional safeguards under the 6th Schedule of the Indian Constitution, an expedited recruitment process and Public Service Commission (PSC), and separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil districts.
The protesters have chosen the Manali route, covering a distance of approximately 1,000 km from Leh to Delhi.
Jigmat Paljor, Coordinator of Leh Apex Body told The Kashmir Times that the yatra has been organised to urge the BJP government to resume the dialogue process.
Notably, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) constituted a high-powered committee headed by Minister of State Nityanand Rai in 2023 to “ensure the protection of land and employment” for the people of Ladakh. However, after several rounds of dialogue, there hasn’t been any breakthrough.
In the last meeting, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah reportedly refused to accept the demands for Ladakh’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution and statehood.
The protest was halted following the Lok Sabha elections in Ladakh in which BJP lost the only seat from the cold desert.
“Now we have resumed it and we are on the way to New Delhi to remind the government that our struggle is alive,” said Sonam Wangchuk.
It is pertinent to mention that, a year after separating the region from Jammu and Kashmir, the people of both Muslim-majority Kargil and Buddhist-dominated Leh, keeping their religious differences aside, joined hands to pursue their demands.
Notably, on 26 August the Central government announced the creation of five new districts of Ladakh. These new districts are Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on 26 August that five new districts would help in “bolstering governance in every nook and cranny.” Ladakh, presently, has two districts – Leh and Kargil – with autonomous hill development councils.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it was a step towards better governance and prosperity and the districts would “now receive more focused attention, bringing services and opportunities even closer to the people.”
A statement by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said the Ladakh administration would form a committee to assess various aspects related to the formation of the new districts, such as headquarters, boundaries, structure, creation of posts among others and submit the report within three months.
“After receiving the report of the said committee, the Union Territory of Ladakh will send the final proposal regarding the creation of new districts based on this report to the Home Ministry for further action,” the MHA said.
The yatra is likely to reach New Delhi on 2 October.
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