Sonam Wangchuk breaks fast; MHA to resume Ladakh talks on 3 Dec

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Monday ended his fast along with others, after the home ministry assured them that the talks on Ladakh's demands will be resumed in December.

Joint secretary (Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh) Prashant Lokhande met the activists, who have been sitting on an indefinite fast at Delhi's Ladakh Bhawan since 6 October, and handed them a letter from the home ministry.

The letter said the high-powered committee of the ministry, which was holding talks with representatives from Ladakh, will meet them next on 3 December.

Following this, Wangchuk and his supporters decided to break their fast and called off the sit-in.

"On the 16th day of our fast, I am happy to say that our main appeal has been resolved. Just now, the joint secretary, ministry of home affairs, came here to Ladakh Bhawan and handed me this letter, which says the talks going on between the apex body of Leh and the KDA (Kargil Democratic Alliance) in Kargil with the Central government will be resumed very soon, by December," Wangchuk said.

He hoped that the outcome of the talks between the ministry and the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance, the two socio-political organisations from the two regions of Ladakh, will be positive.

"The talks will be carried out by these bodies and I hope that very good outcomes will come, not just for Ladakh but for the whole nation. I just hope that I do not ever again have to do another anshan (fast) for this reason and it will result in a very happy ending. I want to, on this occasion, thank everybody who supported us in this effort," Wangchuk said.

Chering Dorjay Lakruk, president of the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), thanked Wangchuk and others who took out a march for resumption of the talks that were stalled. "The talks will be resumed now. We have not achieved anything yet. We hope that the talks on our four-point demands will be meaningful," he said.

Ladakh MP Mohmad Haneefa also hoped that the talks will have a meaningful outcome. "We had to go back to protest because the talks were not resumed even after (the Lok Sabha) election. We are happy that the talks are being resumed and hope that they will continue till a solution is found. We hope that the government will take these talks seriously and our issues will be resolved," Haneefa said.

Wangchuk, along with his supporters, marched to Delhi from Leh demanding Ladakh's inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. They reached the national capital on 30 September after walking for a month, but were detained at the capital's Singhu border point by Delhi Police and released on the night of 2 October.

Wangchuk began the fast on 6 October to press for Ladakh's inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, and demanding to meet the top leadership of the government to raise the issue.

The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution includes provisions for the administration of tribal areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram in the northeast. It establishes autonomous councils that have legislative, judicial, executive and financial powers to independently govern these areas.

The protesters are also demanding statehood, a public service commission for Ladakh, and separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil districts.

The march to Delhi was organised by the Leh Apex Body, which along with the Kargil Democratic Alliance has been spearheading the agitation.