‘No democratic safeguards’: Ladakh Students’ Forum at JNU highlights region’s identity concerns, urges youth to act

The event, titled ‘Ladakh Crisis: The Battle of Identity’, was held at the JNU Students’ Union office and featured political activist and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) member Sajjad Kargili and former MLA and KDA co-chairman Asgar Ali Karbalai.

Describing the night of the clashes, Mustafa Haji, legal advisor to the Apex Body, Leh (ABL), one of the two Ladakh-based organisations spearheading the movement, said, “It was a war-like situation.”

“There were so many injured in the hospital. Doctors were not equipped to handle the situation, with some even performing surgeries beyond their capabilities. Even if they wanted to transfer the injured, there were not enough vehicles,” Haji said. He added that the security forces “shot four people and there was barely any remorse.”

In the aftermath of the September 24 clashes, the administration imposed a curfew, suspended mobile internet services, and announced a magisterial inquiry into the deaths. Local groups, however, have pressed for a judicial probe instead.

The speakers stressed that ever since Ladakh was carved out as a Union Territory in 2019, following the abrogation of Article 370, its residents have been left “without democratic safeguards”. They argued that bringing the region under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution was essential to protect Ladakh’s land, jobs, and cultural identity.

They also warned that the September 24 incident had deepened mistrust between the administration and the people in the region.

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