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Journalism of Courage
On August 6, 2019, just after the BJP-led Central government abrogated Article 370 from the Constitution, BJP MP from Ladakh Jamyang Tsering Namgyal made a rousing speech. “Sunne ki kshamata rakhiye (Have the capacity to listen),” he told members of the Opposition in Parliament. In that speech, he denied claims that Kargil was shut in protest against the Centre’s move, stating firmly that over 70 per cent of the district also supported the abrogation of Article 370, though the demand for Union Territory (UT) status was primarily led by the Leh district.
Since then, with people in Buddhist-dominated Leh also seeking protections of land and job, among other concerns, larger common interests have bridged the gulf between the Apex Body Leh (ABL) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), Ladakh, forging rare political unity. While the concerns are largely political, there are also economic and ecological concerns driving these agitations.
With protests gathering steam, on January 2, the Home Ministry announced that a High Powered Committee (HPC) would look into their demands. So far, the organisations leading the protests have given the announcement a cold shoulder, and the demonstrations are moving out beyond the UT. After protests in Jammu, another one is scheduled for Jantar Mantar in Delhi on February 15.
Apart from the four point agenda, a major concern driving protests pertains to the utilisation of funds in the region. In its first full year as a UT, in 2020-21, the Ladakh administration was able to spend only 27 per cent of its allocated budget of close to Rs 6,000 crore, said a report by a parliamentary panel tabled in the Rajya Sabha in December 2021. As opposed to this, the Hill Councils of both Leh and Kargil spent over 90 per cent of their combined budgets of close to Rs 500 crore. Both councils are pushing for their budgets to be doubled to Rs 1,000 crore next year.
The Chief Executive Councillor (CEC) of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil, Feroz Ahmad Khan, told The Indian Express that since it took shape as a UT, the combined budget of hill councils had increased from approximately Rs 114 crore to about Rs 480 crore. “We have spent 94 per cent of this. Our priorities are driven by demands of the people and we also monitor the progress and impact of each project,” he said.
Khan also pointed out that unused funds are a major loss as, earlier, when Ladakh was part of the former state of J&K, the budget for the Hill Councils was non-lapsable. “Now, under the current set up, if under-utilised, the UT’s funds lapse.”
While government officials (who did not wish to be named) point to harsh conditions during long winters among the major reasons for a short window to carry out developmental work, they also explain that they need more time for the results of their efforts to show. “Big-ticket projects take time to get off the ground and hence, there is little visible progress in the first year or two. Getting clearances for land acquisition or making DPRs takes time”.
That apart, with both the elected councils and the UT administration having the same departments, “there is also some level of overlap sometimes”. A proposal may go through both systems before the duplication gets detected, “thereby wasting limited resources”.
On ecological concerns, Khan stated that making developmental plans for a region like Ladakh demands special attention to the environment. “As all of us elected to the council come from here, we understand these concerns and how they affect the quality of life around us. Therefore, plans are directed by the people.” A concern, he said, the bureaucracy cannot address, “especially when it comes to the environment”.
The understanding among political circles in Ladakh is that with China’s continued efforts to shift the status quo at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the government is keen to avoid an internal conflict. Which is why, despite similar protections sought in the J&K UT, and the Home Minister promising them statehood several times, the Centre has actually reached out only to Ladakh, with the offer of an High Powered Committee, to be headed by Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai, and to discuss measures “to protect the region’s unique culture and language” as well as “ensure protection of land and employment” for the people of Ladakh.
But the organisations leading the protests have sought inclusion of a four-point agenda in the mandate of the committee before agreeing to a meeting. This includes statehood for Ladakh, safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, reservation of jobs for the youth of Ladakh, and creation of separate parliamentary constituencies for the two parts of the region.
Sources told The Indian Express that the ministry is willing to engage in protections entailed under the Constitution, though it is not “talking about the Sixth Schedule in clear terms”. The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 provides for the formation of autonomous administrative divisions in some tribal areas within some states that have some legislative, judicial and administrative autonomy. Thus far, it applies only to the Northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.
