The Ministry of Home Affairs reacted to Leh Apex Body's decision to hold no talks with the Home Ministry's High Powered Committee till normalcy is restored in Ladakh.
The Chairman of the Leh Apex Body had said that they have "unanimously agreed that the situation that is prevailing in Ladakh, keeping that in view, as long as peace is not restored in Ladakh, we will not participate in any talks."
"We will urge the Home Ministry, UT administration, and the administration to take steps to address the atmosphere of fear, grief and anger that is there," he added.
Meanwhile, the MHA has given its reaction, stating that the government is open to dialogue. "Government is always open for dialogue on Ladakh matters with Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance at any time," the MHA said.
"Government would continue to welcome discussion with LAB and KDA through the High Powered Committee (HPC) on Ladakh or any such platform. The dialogue mechanism established with LAB and KDA through HPC yielded good results. Government is confident that continuous dialogue with people of Ladakh would yield desired results in the near future," the MHA added.
Violent protests took place during a shutdown called by the Leh Apex Body on September 24 when it wanted to advance talks with the Centre on the demands for statehood and extension of the Sixth Schedule to Ladakh. The protests turned violent as four people were killed, and many were injured in clashes between protesters and security personnel. Meanwhile, 50 people were taken into custody for their alleged involvement in rioting.
Notably, prominent climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is the main face of the agitation, was also detained under the stringent National Security Act (NSA).
The Centre had sent an invitation to the LAB and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) after nearly four months of stalled talks. "After a long struggle of 70 years, the Centre granted Union Territory status to Ladakh without a legislature (in August 2019), but it was not as per our expectations and justice.
"We felt that the safeguards provided to us under Article 370 and Article 35A were eroded along with democracy, prompting us to launch a fresh agitation for our genuine rights," Chhewang said.
He added that the government had initially assured them of the safeguards. The procedure of the talks continued for five years on their four demands: statehood, extension of safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, a separate cadre, job reservation and public service commission, and separate Lok Sabha seats.
“Our struggle was continuing in a peaceful manner, but what happened on September 24 was beyond one’s understanding… the CRPF acted like hooligans and used excessive force, killing and injuring our people and creating an atmosphere of fear, grief and anger among the people of Ladakh,” he alleged.
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