Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk has announced a three-day hunger strike in Kargil from Saturday to mount pressure on the Centre to hold discussions on his demand for statehood for Ladakh and the region’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule.
Making a case for greater autonomy for the Union Territory, Wangchuk said residents often had to suffer the consequences of the decisions made by bureaucrats, often outsiders with little knowledge about the region.
“The people of Ladakh are just asking for what was either promised or what they deserve,” Wangchuk said, stressing the need to bring Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, which provides for a framework for governance of certain sensitive areas by establishing “autonomous bodies” to safeguard the rights of indigenous communities.
Underlining the breakdown of talks with the BJP-led Centre on the Sixth Schedule, Wagchuk announced a series of protests beginning with the hunger strike.
The protest is being organised by the Kargil Democratic Alliance and the Leh Apex Body in Hussaini Park. Separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil and the establishment of a Public Service Commission in Ladakh are also part of the demands.
Sharing the struggles of Ladakh residents with The Telegraph, Wangchuk said: “Bureaucrats are not locals. They come for two-three years and go away. They make mistakes in the decision-making process, but don’t stay to see the consequences. The locals have to bear the consequences later.”
Citing the example of a solar power plant being set up in Ladakh, he said the project would force out shepherds known for producing pashmina wool. He said the authorities were expropriating land for projects without taking the locals into confidence.
Wangchuk, who had come to Delhi in September last year for talks with the Centre on his demands for greater autonomy of Ladakh, expressed dismay at the government’s “lackadaisical” attitude. “They are not keen on a discussion on the core issues of democracy and safeguards under the Sixth Schedule,” he said.
