Ladakh | Regret over long-sought UT status, with no visible road ahead

The people of Leh celebrated a 'victory' in August 2019, when Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its special status with the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, and the state was reorganised into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

However, their fellow Ladakhis in Kargil protested, viewing it as a dark day for democracy.

The idea of a united front between Leh and Kargil on a joint four-point agenda for Ladakh remained elusive for the next two years, with significant differences emerging between the two districts over future strategies.

Kargil called for the restoration of statehood and Article 370, while Leh, understanding that this was not the Union Territory it had envisioned, began to rally around demands such as the Sixth Schedule and a separate legislature for Ladakh.

In no mood to address concerns

Tsering Dorje Lakruk, former minister in the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir government and president of the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) and chairman of the Apex Body Leh, reflected on the ongoing struggle.

“In August 2019, I realised immediately that this was a bad decision. Despite being with the BJP at the time, I did not participate in the celebrations that were widespread in Leh. The Central government took a wrong decision without consulting Ladakhis," he told The Federal.

Watch | What are the demands of Sonam Wangchuk and others in Ladakh?

Over the past four years, the Ladakhi leadership has been spreading awareness about the four-point agenda, engaging in eight rounds of talks with the Union Home Ministry.

Ladakhis have continuously protested, staged hunger strikes, and undertaken padayatras (foot marches) to pressure the Union government into addressing their concerns. However, the BJP-led Narendra Modi government at the Centre has taken no concrete steps so far.

Why Leh sought UT status

Leh’s demand for Union Territory status has historical roots. When Jammu and Kashmir was considering a referendum to join India or Pakistan in 1947, the Buddhist leaders in Leh opted for unity with India, diverging from the predominant sentiment in Kashmir.

Lakruk elaborated that Leh’s demand for a centrally administered territory grew in the 1960s, when the Ladakhi Buddhist leadership sought an administrative model similar to Arunachal Pradesh’s.

This demand led to the creation of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) in 1995, as a Union Territory was not possible under Article 370.

“We told the Union government (led by Rajiv Gandhi) back in the late 1980s that we hadn’t abandoned the demand for a Union Territory, but under Article 370, it was not practically possible. Thus, we accepted the LAHDC model for Leh, which was implemented in Leh in 1995 and in Kargil after 2000,” Lakruk recalled.

The anti-Kashmir sentiment in Ladakh grew after the communal riots of 1989 in Leh and continued as the Union Territory demand gained momentum. When militancy began in Kashmir in 1989, Ladakhi leaders became increasingly convinced that they had no future aligned with Kashmir.

Also read: Dilli chalo | Why a group of Ladakhis are on a month-long padayatra

Why UT status backfired

Lakruk described the early years of Union Territory status as “alarming”. The J&K Domicile Law, which required 15 years of residency for citizenship, raised concerns in Leh that similar laws could be applied to Ladakh.

Veteran leaders such as Thupstan Tsewang and Lakruk held a press conference rejecting the potential imposition of such laws in Ladakh, which became a turning point for the Ladakhi movement.

The Apex Body was subsequently formed to present a united front in alliance with the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), understanding that a collective voice from both Leh and Kargil would be stronger. Overcoming initial resistance, the two regions reconciled differences, such as disputes over the Kargil Gompa (Monastery) issue, through dialogue, paving the way for a joint struggle.

Enter Sonam Wangchuk

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk joined the movement in 2023, using his platform to raise awareness about Ladakh’s unique environmental challenges.

Wangchuk, known for his work in solar energy and water conservation, emphasised the importance of indigenous communities in protecting Ladakh’s fragile ecosystem, advocating for Sixth Schedule status as a way to safeguard the environment and cultural heritage.

“The Sixth Schedule makes sense ecologically,” Wangchuk explained. “People who have lived here for centuries are best suited to protect Ladakh’s environment.”

Watch: Centre not willing to give statehood for Ladakh: Activist Sajjad Kargili

What Wangchuk achieved

Wangchuk’s entry into the movement drew nationwide attention. Using alternative media, podcasts, and continuous social media engagement, he mobilised the community and brought wider awareness to Ladakh’s issues, including environmental conservation and self-governance.

To educate leaders about the importance of the Sixth Schedule, Wangchuk and the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives Ladakh (HIAL) founded by him organised study tours of UTs and Sixth Schedule regions in Northeast India.

“Compared to the 1990s, it was easy to mobilise and educate the community after 2019. I never planned to play an activist’s role directly in this movement. I started in 2019, or even a little before it, and it was mainly to make people aware of the stakes that lay before them after the abrogation of Article 370 and its safeguards,” he explained.

Continuous hunger strikes

The Centre's failure to respond to peaceful protests prompted Wangchuk and others to escalate their actions. This included a month-long padyatra followed by a 15-day hunger strike, which forced the Union government to reinitiate the talks that had stalled since early 2024.

The Ladakhi leadership was assured that on December 3, fresh talks would resume with the Union government on the four-point agenda and the grievances of the Ladakhi leadership.

Before the padyatra, however, Wangchuk and other Ladakhis undertook two major hunger strikes. The first, from January 26 to 30, 2023, focused on pressing the Centre to grant Ladakh inclusion in the Sixth Schedule to protect its environment and indigenous culture. The second hunger strike spanned 21 days in March 2024, calling for similar protections and Ladakhi statehood.

Wangchuk ended his hunger strike on March 26, emphasising that the movement would continue through various community-led actions until their demands were addressed.

Watch: Wangchuk's detention: 'Why is Centre turning a deaf ear?'

A veteran of Ladakh’s movements

Significantly, the 88-year-old Yangchan Dolma, popularly called Ama Chocho by Ladakhis, joined the movement in April and sat on a two-month-eight-day-long hunger strike in solidarity with Wangchuk. Dolma, the founding president of the Ladakh Buddhist Association Women’s Wing, has led several protests in the past, which have had a huge impact on the sociopolitical history of Ladakh.

She has been part of all major movements of Ladakh after Independence, including the Scheduled Tribe movement in the 1970s, in which two Ladakhis died, followed by the Ladakh Union Territory Front (LUTF) movement, which intensified in the 1980s, and the Autonomous Hill council demand for Ladakh. Since 2022, she has joined the movement for statehood and Sixth Schedule status.

“I sat on the hunger strike in support of Sonam Wangchuk to save the future of Ladakh. I will do whatever it takes and make supreme sacrifices to safeguard the future of my fellow Ladakhis,” she said.

Despite all these events over the past four years, the Centre has done nothing.

Coming soon: Ladakhis' struggle, and five years of Centre's inactions - Part II