KDA urges Centre for resumption of talks on constitutional safeguards for Ladakh

‘4-point agenda issues critical for Ladakhis’ welfare, need to be addressed promptly’

Jammu: Days after the opposition parties cornered the BJP-led NDA government in Lok Sabha for allegedly depriving the people of Ladakh of constitutional safeguards and genuine democracy, the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) on Friday requested the Union government to resume dialogue with local leaders on four-point agenda, including full-fledged Statehood for the Union Territory.
Highlighting ongoing concerns about governance and representation in the region, the KDA, under the leadership of Co-Chairmen Qamar Ali Akhone and Haji Asgar Ali Karbalaie, urgently called upon the Government of India to resume the dialogue process, saying “this demand pertains to the four-point agenda that has been placed before the government through the High Powered Committee (HPC) constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)”.
“We urge the Ministry of Home Affairs to reconvene the HPC and restart the dialogue process with the local leaders of Ladakh at the earliest opportunity. The KDA remains committed to working collaboratively with the government to ensure that the legitimate and genuine demands of the people of Ladakh are met,” the KDA said.
It said the Government of India had previously constituted an HPC to engage in talks with the local leadership of Ladakh. “However, these talks were unfortunately halted before any substantial progress could be made. The KDA now demands that these crucial discussions be resumed without further delay”.
On March 4 this year, several rounds of talks between MHA and Ladakh leaders had failed to bring any “concrete outcome” with the Centre, according to representatives of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and KDA, “refusing to accept” their two key demands—Statehood to Ladakh and the region’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of Constitution.
The LAB and KDA leaders had also met the Union Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence but the “meeting too did not result in any positive outcome”. This was the first meeting of the Ladakh groups with the Union Home Minister since 2020.
Pertinently, the KDA’s unanimous candidate Haji Hanifa Jan won the Ladakh Lok Sabha seat by a big margin while the BJP, which succeeded in winning the seat twice in the 2014 and 2019 elections, was relegated to third place.
“The issues outlined in the four-point agenda are critical for the welfare and future of the people of Ladakh, and it is imperative that they are addressed promptly and comprehensively”, the KDA said.
The situation in Ladakh has been a contentious issue, especially after the region’s reorganization in 2019, which saw it being separated from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and downgraded to a Union Territory without a legislature.
“Since the implementation of the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019, the people of Ladakh have been fighting for their fundamental rights. The joint political, social, and religious leadership of Ladakh (Kargil and Leh) have been advocating for essential safeguards related to land, employment, reservation, and identity,” the KDA leaders said.
“The Apex Body Leh and the KDA have consolidated their efforts into a four-point agenda, which includes full-fledged statehood for Ladakh, constitutional safeguards for the residents of Ladakh under the Sixth Scheduled the Indian Constitution and recruitment and job reservations for the local educated unemployed youths of Ladakh and establishment of a separate Public Service Commission for Ladakh and Creation of separate parliamentary constituencies for both Leh and Kargil,” the KDA spokesperson Nasir H Munshi, Secretary, KDA said.
He said the KDA would continue to strive for justice and equitable treatment for the people of Ladakh and hoped that the government would recognize the urgency and importance of their demands.
On July 1, two key demands of Ladakhi people for Statehood and the region’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution resonated in the Parliament, with the opposition parties blaming the NDA government for “deliberating denying” the people of Ladakh their rights after the region was “downgraded” from a state to a Union Territory in August 2019.

Updated On 7/6/2024 2:20:51 AM