Bruised by ‘anti-national’ tag, Kargil sides with Leh on boycotting talks with Centre

The labelling of Ladakhis as “anti-nationals” and the arrest of their “hero”, Sonam Wangchuk, have left the entire region wounded while flaring up the anger among locals. Following in the footsteps of their Leh brethren, the Kargil leadership on Tuesday (September 30) announced that they are boycotting the October 6 talks with the Centre. The Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) has refused to restart the talks until the Centre fulfils their demands, including the release of climate activist Wangchuk and an impartial probe into the September 24 police firing in which four people were killed and 90 were injured.

Also read: Kargil body halts talks with Centre; demands Sonam Wangchuk's release

The Leh Apex Body (LAB), which, along with KDA, is spearheading the agitation for Ladakh’s statehood and constitutional safeguards, had withdrawn from the October 6 talks on Monday (September 29), making similar demands to the Centre.

Wangchuk’s arrest flares up anger

The Ladakh leadership has accused the Union territory administration of mishandling the protests that erupted in Leh last week. The subsequent detention of climate activist Wangchuk under the National Security Act (NSA) and the volley of allegations hurled at him by the BJP and the Ladakh administration marked a further deterioration of the situation in the sensitive border region.

Wangchuk was leading the movement on behalf of civil society groups demanding statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution to preserve tribal rights. The agitation, however, turned violent on September 24 when protesters clashed with police, resulting in the death of four people. While Wangchuk withdrew his hunger strike after the violence, he was arrested under the NSA two days later. He is currently lodged in Jodhpur jail.

Also read: Ladakh tourism hit by Leh curfew after violence; bookings cancelled, travellers restricted

Squished hopes

Wangchuk had supported the Centre’s 2019 move to bifurcate the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, in the hope that Ladakh would be granted full statehood and its indigenous culture and heritage would be protected by including it in the Sixth Schedule.

His supporters say his arrest has only flared up the anger in the region and amplified Ladakh’s struggle nationwide. At the press meet in Delhi on Tuesday, the hurt and resentment were visible on the faces of the KDA leadership, who flew all the way from Ladakh to the national capital in the hope that they would be able to debunk the “false narratives” that are being run against them in the aftermath of the September 24 violence.

Also read: ‘We have no future in our land’: Ladakh’s youth rise in anger against Centre

Ladakhis hurt by ‘anti-national’ tag

On September 27, after the curfew was imposed in Leh, Ladakh, Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta had said that the people should remain vigilant against “anti-social and anti-national” elements attempting to disturb harmony in the Union territory. A day later, Ladakh’s top police chief officer SD Singh Jamwal had defended Wangchuk’s detention under the NSA while describing him as the “main instigator of violence” and claiming that investigators were looking into his alleged Pakistan connections. Expressing anguish over such statements, the KDA leadership said labelling Ladakhis as “anti-national” was unfortunate.

They said that the region, which has always sacrificed for the country’s sovereignty, starting from the 1962 war with China to the recent Galwan clash, doesn’t need “certificates of patriotism” and that Wangchuk, who brought laurels to the nation with his work, continues to remain a “national hero”.

Also read: Ladakh DGP defends police firing, blames Sonam Wangchuk for Leh violence

“It is sad that it is being projected that there is involvement of some foreign hands in the protests. Sometimes they say there is a Chinese hand, sometimes they tell us that you are Pakistani agents, or are funded by the CIA. This is what at least the government press releases and L-G-led Union territory administration have said in the past five days," said KDA co-chairman Asghar Karbalai.

KDA makes three demands

Karbalai, who was also joined by other leadership from Kargil, including MP Mohammad Haneefa; CEC, Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil, Dr Jaffar Akhone, and KDA leader Sajjad Kargili put forth three demands before the Centre prior to restarting any dialogue with it.

They are: a judicial inquiry led by a sitting high court judge to probe the “reality” of the September 24 violence, an immediate stop to the “arrest spree” in Leh, and the release of Wangchuk with “all dignity” and dropping of “all false” charges slapped against him. The leadership also clarified that they haven’t shut the doors for talks with the Centre. “The government should understand our position and take some steps,” said Kargili.

Also read: Leh violence: Police question Sonam Wangchuk’s Pakistan visits

The leadership also hinted that the organisation would start its “struggle” again in case its demands are not met.

Was police firing necessary? ask KDA leaders

Karbalai said in the September 24 firings, “unarmed protesters” were killed.

“The bullets were fired on their chest...Among the killed, one was a soldier who had fought during the Kargil war. He was not killed in the war, but was killed at the hands of our own CRPF,” said Karbalai, referring to Kargil war veteran Tsewang Tharchin, who was among the four killed in the police crackdown on protesters.

Ladakh MP Haneefa said the situation in Ladakh could have been controlled in a much better way rather than firing bullets. “The narrative is being spread that Ladakh is becoming anti-national. The people are angry about it. Ladakhis are nationalist people,” he said.

Watch: What led to Ladakh unrest, and why was Sonam Wangchuk arrested? | Capital Beat

“We are demanding something within the Constitution,” the MP said, adding, “The democracy has been snatched from us; we want its restoration.” Dr Jaffar rebutted the official version of the September 24 protest in Leh that the bullets were fired in self-defence by the security forces.

“Around 18 people have been critically injured. They have all been hit by bullets in the upper part of the body. Before taking this extreme decision of firing bullets, some precautions could have been taken,” he added.