Civil society leaders in Ladakh, who are protesting to demand Constitutional safeguards for the region, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday but the “meeting did not result in any positive outcome”.
However, a statement by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said that Mr. Shah had assured the delegation that “Government of India is committed to provide necessary constitutional safeguards to Union Territory of Ladakh.”
This is the first meeting of the Ladakh groups with Mr. Shah since 2020.
The Minister stated that the High Powered Committee (HPC) on Ladakh, constituted in 2023, had been discussing the modalities to provide such safeguards. Mr. Shah said that the consultative mechanism should continue to engage on issues, including measures to protect the region’s unique culture and language; protection of land and employment; inclusive development and employment generation; empowerment of Hill Councils, including the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC); and examining constitutional safeguards for “positive outcomes”.
The members of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) said they had had wo rounds of meeting with MHA officials on Monday.
“Today the sub-committee of LAB and KDA held a meeting with the officials of MHA and adviser Union Territory, Ladakh. The meeting ended without any concrete outcome. Subsequently the sub-committee members had a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence. This meeting too didn’t result in any positive outcome. Both the bodies will devise future course of action after consultation with the people of the two districts,” a statement issued by the leaders said.
The MHA and the civil society groups have had three rounds of talks so far — on December 4, 2023, and February 19 and February 24, 2024.
Significant progress had been made by the committee, the MHA said.
“A sub-committee constituted by the HPC, is also actively engaged with the Ministry of Law and other experts. The second meeting of the said sub-committee was held today which was attended by the representatives of LAB and KDA. Senior officers of MHA, Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative Department were also present. The meeting was held in a cordial manner and various issues pertaining to land, employment and constitutional safeguards progressed for the benefit of the people of Ladakh,” the MHA said.
The Union Territory, with a population of 2.74 lakh (2011 Census) has erupted in protests several times in the past four years amid concerns around protection of land and resources, employment for locals, and bureaucratic overreach.
In the February 24 meeting, MHA officials had agreed to examine how the provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution could be implemented in Ladakh’s context.
The LAB and KDA represent the Buddhist majority and Shia Muslim-dominated regions in Ladakh, respectively. They are jointly protesting for Statehood for Ladakh; inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, thus giving it tribal status; job reservation for locals; and a parliamentary seat each for Leh and Kargil.
Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament Thupstan Chhewang, who is also the chief of the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), has been leading the talks.
After Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 of the Constitution was revoked by Parliament on August 5, 2019, Ladakh was turned into a Union Territory without any Legislative Assembly.
