Demands of Ladakh take a turn and it can snowball into a crisis

By: Musaib Iqbal MK

Srinagar

Ladakh has been waiting for the new laws from the Union Home Ministry as they were promised so after they held number of meetings at New Delhi expressing concern about the safeguarding of their avenues of employment and also to safeguard their land.

They were promised by the union government that they would be provided with safeguards to their land and jobs and also to their culture and identity.

Recently media has reported that apex body formed by the people of Ladakh has demanded Sikkim-type 30-seat Legislature to the Union Territory and rejected domicile certificate while seeking State Subject or its like document for the locals for protecting their jobs and other issues.

According to a report by Daily Excelsior a draft prepared by the Apex Committee of Leh has suggested that along with Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, the Union Territory of Ladakh should also be accorded 30-member Assembly on the pattern of Sikkim, which the body claims has only couple of lakh higher population than the Union Territory of Ladakh.

This is for the first time since Ladakh was granted the status of Union Territory after being segregated from erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir that the Apex Committee has listed the demand for grant of Legislature to the UT in an official document which is due to be placed before the Union Ministry of Home Affairs shortly though such a demand was raised from certain quarters earlier also.

Confirming that the Apex Committee will be demanding Legislature for the Union Territory of Ladakh, Committee’s senior leader and former two-time Member Parliament Thupstan Chhewang told the Excelsior on telephone that population of Sikkim is only slightly more than that of Ladakh.

“If Sikkim can be granted the Legislature, why can’t Ladakh? Moreover, we are part of very sensitive region having boundaries with China and Pakistan. The demand of Legislature is in addition to our Sixth Schedule status demand which also remains our foremost concern,’’ Chhewang was quoted as saying by Jammu based newspaper.

Reliable sources said the Apex Committee of Ladakh, which has members from different political, social and religious organizations but only from Leh district as Kargil had refused to associate itself with the Panel, has rejected the offer for grant of domicile like certificates to the people in the Union Territory on the pattern of Jammu and Kashmir on the ground that people living in the UT for 15 plus years will also be entitled to the domiciles and would manage to get jobs and lands there.

Instead, according to sources, the Apex Committee has demanded either restoration of State Subjects which existed in the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State, of which Ladakh was third division, or State Subject like document which should be given only to the original residents of Ladakh for facilitating their recruitment into jobs and purchase of land besides other purposes.

As far as demand for Legislature for Ladakh is concerned, sources said it has been raised by the Apex Committee on the pattern of Sikkim which has 30-member Assembly with slightly higher population than Ladakh but the UT’s area and topography is higher. However, Ladakh had only four seats in the Legislative Assembly of erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir and lone Lok Sabha seat but both Leh and Kargil districts have one Autonomous Hill Development Council each with both having 26 elected and four nominated members.

With inputs from Daily Excelsior