New Delhi: At least three people were killed and several injured in Leh after protests over demands for statehood and extension of the Sixth Schedule to Ladakh turned violent on Wednesday. The protesters torched the local BJP office and a police van.
After the violence, the Leh district administration imposed prohibitory orders across Leh.
Independent MP from Ladakh Mohammed Hanifa told ThePrint that the violence might have spiralled out of control due to confrontation between members of the Bharatiya Janata Party and youths from the Leh Apex Body (LAB), who were on a hunger strike since 10 September in support of the demand. It could not, however, not be confirmed by the police. Calls to multiple BJP leaders in Ladakh went answered.
“Youths had given a call for bandh Tuesday after a male and female who were on the hunger strike had fallen ill. They were emotionally charged up and it led to confrontation even at the hospital last evening,” Hanifa said.
While the MP said that there were three deaths, security sources and local residents told ThePrint that there could be more casualties. The police were yet to make a statement on this issue till late in the evening.
Mobile phones of Leh Deputy Commissioner Romil Singh Donk and SSP Shruti Arora were not reachable even after multiple attempts. Ladakh DGP S.D. Singh Jamwal refused to comment on the casualties and number of injured.
Sonam Wangchuk, who had joined the hunger strike in Leh, later called off his hunger strike. Wangchuk has been spearheading the agitation for statehood and other demands for around two years.
The LAB has been demanding immediate resumption of talks with the Centre. The talks have been stalled since May. The Ministry of Home Affairs had announced on Saturday that the next meeting of the high-powered committee constituted for Ladakh will take place on 6 October in New Delhi.
“After a 72 and 62 year old protester fell sick at the site while on hunger strike, the anger aggravated. The youth or what we call GenZ have been left unemployed for several years, this has fuelled their anger against the government,” said Wangchuk in a press conference on Wednesday. However, he later he clarified he did not attribute the violence to Gen-Z.
Sajjad Kargili of the Kargil Democratic Alliance attributed the reasons behind violence to “a sense of frustration, a sense of alienation” among people.
“Our hill councils are disempowered. There is insecurity, it is because of that and due to the failed policies of the government, the imposed policies, the policies that are being forced upon us, it is because of them that there is anger,” he said.
“There is no safeguard. You have seen the situation in Himachal as well as Uttarakhand. Ladakh is ecologically very fragile and relations are getting very bad here,” Sajjad Kargili told ThePrint.
“Our future plan is that we want the government to react responsibly. And the talks should resume. There should be a dialogue. And once again, the situation should be under control. Things should remain normal. And we want a meaningful dialogue,” Sajjad Kargili added.
Ladakh became a union territory after the reorganisation of the then state of Jammu & Kashmir in 2019. Ahead of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Council election in 2020, the BJP had promised to extend the Sixth Schedule to Ladakh too. Wangchuk and other activists have accused the BJP-led central government of going back on that promise. They allege that lack of protection that the sixth schedule would have provided makes the region vulnerable to the whims of “outside” authorities who lack understanding of the region’s needs.
The Sixth Schedule empowers tribal communities with a degree of autonomy in governance, enabling them to manage their own affairs and resources.
In a statement released on Wednesday evening, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) pinned the blame for the unrest on Wangchuk, alleging that his ‘provocative speeches’ had instigated the mob. Additionally, the ministry said that Wangchuk continued his hunger strike ‘with mention of Arab-spring styled protest or Gen-Z revolution’ despite the next meeting of the high-powered committee scheduled on 6 October, along with some additional meetings on 25 and 26 September.
“On 24th September, at around 11.30 am, a mob, instigated by his provocative speeches, left the venue of the hunger strike and attacked a political party office as well as government office of the Chief Executive Councilor (CEC) Leh. They also put these offices on fire, attacked the security personnel, and torched a police vehicle. The unruly mob attacked police personnel, in which more than 30 police/CRPF personnel were injured. The mob continued to destroy the public property and attack the police personnel,” an MHA spokesperson said.
“To protect themselves, police had to resort to firing, in which unfortunately some
casualties are reported,” the spokesperson further said.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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