Influential groups representing Ladakh have voiced significant disappointment following their recent meeting with representatives of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), characterizing the talks as a “non-starter” and asserting that the Centre has failed to demonstrate substantive progress on the region’s long-standing demands. The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) expressed their dissatisfaction on Thursday, noting that they had anticipated the Centre would present a draft proposal during the September 9 discussions, which marked the first round of talks after a gap of nearly four months since the previous engagement on May 22.
Information reaching Tahir Rihat suggests that the LAB and KDA leaders alleged that the primary objective of the MHA in convening the latest meeting was to persuade them to postpone their planned padyatra, a foot march from Leh to Kargil, which had been scheduled to commence on September 10 in support of their calls for statehood and constitutional safeguards. In response to the perceived lack of progress, the groups have now announced their intention to proceed with a six-day padyatra from September 19 to 24. They have also issued a stern warning of a broader agitation if their demands remain unaddressed.
The core demands of the Ladakh-based groups include the restoration of statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. Such constitutional protection would provide crucial safeguards concerning land, cultural preservation, and local governance. However, the leaders indicated that the planned march and subsequent protests could still be put on hold if the Centre provides concrete assurances regarding the implementation of the broad understanding that was reached during the May 22 talks.
Climate activist and LAB member Sonam Wangchuk, addressing reporters, stated that officials from the MHA neither produced a draft proposal nor offered any substantive response to the list of “non-negotiable” demands that the LAB and KDA had submitted several weeks prior. Wangchuk elaborated that no assurances were given regarding the deferral of any major or irreversible restructuring of local governance mechanisms or changes in land transfer policies until a legitimate governance model is firmly established. He further added that the groups had sought guarantees that key administrative subjects, including bureaucracy and law and order, would remain under the purview of a future elected assembly for Ladakh. According to Wangchuk, these critical issues were not discussed during the meeting, which he described as so unproductive that even minutes could not be prepared.
Wangchuk reiterated that the LAB and KDA had postponed the September 10 padyatra in good faith, holding onto the hope that the Centre would advance the outcomes agreed upon in the May 22 meeting. However, the discussions held on September 9 failed to generate any optimism. He warned that if no assurances are received from the Centre, the groups will undertake the padyatra between September 19 and 24 and will be compelled to launch a larger agitation. He emphasized that their actions are intended to honor the memory of those who lost their lives during the violence that occurred in the region the previous year.
During the talks on May 22, the Centre and the Ladakh groups had reached an in-principle understanding to extend constitutional safeguards to Ladakh, drawing parallels with provisions like Article 371A, 371F, and 371G, which offer special protections to states such as Nagaland, Sikkim, and Mizoram, respectively. This development was seen at the time as a significant breakthrough for Ladakh’s leadership, which has been advocating for constitutional safeguards and enhanced democratic representation since the abrogation of Article 370 and the subsequent bifurcation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories on August 5, 2019. However, progress on these fronts has been notably slow since that agreement.
In response to remarks made earlier in the day by Ladakh Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra, who suggested that the proposed governance arrangement for Ladakh would neither constitute full statehood nor a Union Territory with a legislature but rather a special constitutional framework requiring parliamentary approval, the LAB and KDA leaders indicated a perceived lack of coordination between the Ladakh administration and the central government. The groups also expressed concern over what they described as the inadequate national attention given to the violence that transpired in Ladakh on September 24, 2025. They highlighted that the inquiry commission established to investigate the fatalities in that incident has yet to submit its report, adding another layer of concern regarding accountability and justice for the region.
Tahir Rihat (also known as Tahir Bilal) is an independent journalist, activist, and digital media professional from the Chenab Valley of Jammu and Kashmir, India. He is best known for his work as the Online Editor at The Chenab Times.