As Sonam Wangchuk plans march to China border, internet speed curbs in Ladakh, Section 144 in place

Explaining the reasons for the march, Wangchuk said, “On one hand, they (Ladakhis) are losing land to Indian corporates… roughly 150,000 square kilometres of prime pasture land. And on the other hand, they are losing pasture land to China, which is encroaching from the North and has captured huge chunks of Indian land in the last five years.”

He added that Wangchuk nomadic leaders, who he will march with, “will show us how far they used to go grazing earlier and where they have to stop now”.

The Leh District Magistrate, while imposing section 144, cited “reliable inputs/apprehensions of breach of peace and public tranquillity in the district” and the need to prevent “danger to human life”.

With Section 144 in effect ahead of Sunday’s march, no procession/rally/march can be taken out “without the prior approval of the District Magistrate, Leh, in writing”. Additionally, no one is allowed to use loudspeakers without prior approval.

“No one shall make any statements which have the potential to disturb communal harmony, public tranquillity and which may lead to law and order problems in the district,” the order states.

The magistrate’s order also mentions the model code of conduct being in place in Ladakh.

The police also underscored the “emergent security scenario” in Leh, stating that there is “every apprehension of possible misuse of mobile data services by anti-social elements and miscreants to incite/provoke the general public” through various means of social media posts.

Shiv Darshan Singh, Additional Director General of Police, Ladakh has sought to reduce mobile data services up to 2G, “thereby suspending the mobile data of 3G, 4G, 5G and public WiFi facilities temporarily in the interest of maintenance of public peace”.

This comes into effect for 24 hours starting 6 pm on Saturday.