New Delhi, Feb 3: Two prominent Ladakh groups—the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)—are expected to press for constitutional safeguards and greater political autonomy for the Union Territory during the High Powered Committee (HPC) meeting on Wednesday. Ladakh leaders who arrived in the capital on Tuesday are holding informal consultations to finalise their strategy ahead of the talks, sources said.
The deliberations are likely to continue into Wednesday afternoon before the meeting begins, which will be chaired by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai. This will be the first HPC meeting on Ladakh since the September 2025 clashes, marking the resumption of suspended talks between the Centre and Union Territory representatives.
Both LAB and KDA are expected to reiterate their core demands, including constitutional safeguards, the release of Sonam Wangchuk, and enhanced political autonomy for Ladakh, which was carved out as a separate UT in 2019 after the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir. The groups have long been demanding full statehood with its own legislative assembly, along with autonomous district councils, two Lok Sabha seats, and stronger protections for the region’s unique culture, fragile ecosystem and land rights.
The talks were suspended after violent clashes on September 24, 2025, between security forces and protesters demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status, which left four civilians dead and around 90 injured. In the aftermath, Sonam Wangchuk was detained under the National Security Act (NSA) and is currently lodged in Jodhpur jail. The NSA allows the Centre and states to detain individuals for up to 12 months if their actions are deemed “prejudicial to the defence of India,” though the order can be revoked earlier.
A sub‑committee level meeting between Ladakh leaders and home ministry officials was held in October 2025, where representatives demanded the immediate release of all arrested leaders, including Wangchuk. On June 3, 2025, following an HPC meeting on May 27, the home ministry announced new reservation and domicile policies for Ladakh, reserving 85 per cent of jobs for locals and one‑third of seats in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils for women.
Under the new rules, a person becomes a domicile of Ladakh if they have resided in the UT for 15 years, or have studied for seven years and appeared in Class 10 or 12 in an institution located in Ladakh, for the purpose of appointment to posts under the UT or local authorities (excluding cantonment boards).
