To intensify their ongoing agitation for statehood and other demands, agitating groups of Ladakh have given the "Leh Chalo" call on February 3 to mount pressure on the government to take serious note of their issues.
The "Leh Chalo" is jointly given by the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA). For nearly three years these groups have been agitating for their demands including full-fledged statehood for Ladakh and constitutional guarantees under the sixth schedule.
"Leh Chalo call is part of our ongoing agitation. The LAB and KDA have jointly given this call to draw the attention of the government towards our just and genuine demand", Sajjad Kargili, a member of KDA and a prominent social activist and political activist of Ladakh told The International Bussiness Times.
"After our meeting with the High-Power Committee constituted by the Centre we were hoping that some effective steps would be taken but nothing concrete has been done so far", Kargili regretted and added that residents of Ladakh demanded immediate solution to their genuine demands.
Representatives from various religions and the Leh Apex Body (LAB) appealed to people to participate in huge numbers in the scheduled "Leh Chalo" movement on February 3, 2024.
Tsering Lakrok, vice-president of Leh Apex Body said that the protest will begin around 10 am on February 3rd at NDS Stadium in Leh.
Draft of demands submitted to Centre on January 22
As a follow-up exercise of their meeting with the High-Power Committee on December 4, the agitating groups of Ladakh submitted a detailed draft of their demands to the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Chering Dorjey, co-chairman of the Apex Body said that keeping in view history, strategic importance, environmental significance, similarity with other states in the North East, and various other parameters, Ladakh deserves to be granted statehood.
In the draft, Ladakhi groups also raised the demand for the Sixth Schedule. "Recognizing Ladakh as a tribal majority area with a fragile environment, the draft proposes bringing Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule. This measure aims to guarantee special protections for the land rights of the Scheduled Tribes in Ladakh, preserving community identity, history, and culture, and allowing for the creation of laws tailored to the region's unique requirements," the draft read.
A meeting with HPC was held on December 4.
The meeting between the agitating groups of Ladakh and the Centre's High Powered Committee (HPC) headed by Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai was held on December 4, 2023.
Representatives of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) highlighted their demands during the 90-minute meeting.
The meeting remained inconclusive with no major decision or announcement except for an appeal by the Union MoS Home to groups spearheading the agitation to consider options other than the Sixth Schedule which can also address their concerns on the protection of land, culture, identity, etc.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, on January 3, 2023, constituted a High Powered Committee (HPC) headed by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai to discuss land and employment safeguards for the Union Territory of Ladakh.
The committee was constituted to discuss measures to protect Ladakh's unique culture and language taking into consideration its geographical location and its strategic importance.
The KDA and the LAB have been spearheading the agitation in support of their four major demands including full-fledged statehood for Ladakh, implementation of the Sixth Schedule to protect the interest of the tribal people of Ladakh, separate Lok Sabha seats for Kargil and Leh, and establishment of 'Ladakh Public Service Commission' with the Ladakh Resident Certificate (LRC) as a mandatory requirement for all Gazetted Posts in Ladakh.
