LEH: With the next meeting of the groups from Ladakh with a home ministry panel set to be held on May 27, representatives from Leh and Kargil hoped that they will arrive at some conclusion over the issue of employment, so that the demand for the Sixth Schedule can be taken up for discussion.
The representatives of Leh Apex Body (LAB), and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) will meet the home ministry panel under Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai on May 27.
Chering Dorjay Lakruk, president of Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), told PTI that he hoped the talks will be taken forward from where they were left in the last meeting, and the issue of employment would be settled.
“We are expecting that we will carry forward the talks from where we left it last time, and some agreement will be reached on the issue of employment,” he told PTI.
“Once the issue of employment is settled, we can move on to talks on the Sixth Schedule status for Ladkah,” said Lakruk, who is also the co-chairman of LAB.
He also said they had suggested for the meeting to be extended to two days, as it is set to take place after a long gap. “A lot of time has been lost, we hope the talks move at a faster pace from here,” he said.
KDA member Sajjad Kargili said the groups had joined the talks with high hopes, but it has been dragging on.
“We have been struggling over our four key issues for a long time. However, nothing has changed on the ground yet. Whether it is the demand for statehood, Sixth Schedule, the issue of public service commission and employment for youths, or the issue of representation…” he said.
“These are the issues people of Ladakh have been agitating for over last five years.
“I would like to appeal to the government that we have had a lot of talks, discussion and dialogue… This time, we are trying to reach a decision, and this is the position of our senior leaders,” he said.
“I hope that at least this time there is a practical solution so we can move forward,” he said.
Ladakh was carved into a Union Territory without legislature when Article 370 and 35A were abrogated on August 5, 2019, and Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into two Union Territories.
Soon after, the demand for status under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution to safeguard the cultural and economic interests of the locals started emerging.
On August 1, 2020, LAB and KDA concluded with agreement on the four-point common agenda – statehood for Ladakh, constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, a dedicated public service commission, and separate Lok Sabha seats for both Kargil and Leh.
As the demands grew, in January 2023, the home ministry constituted a high-powered committee headed by MoS Rai to “ensure protection of land and employment” for the people of Ladakh.
A series of meetings were held till the talks fell apart in March 2024.
This was followed by a fast by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk in Leh, which was suspended shortly before the Lok Sabha polls.
Wangchuk again took out a march from Leh to Delhi, demanding the Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh, and also sat on a hunger strike at Delhi’s Ladakh Bhawan in October 2024, before a breakthrough was reached and the talks were resumed.
According to the representatives from the LAB and KDA, in the meeting held on December 4, 2024, the government had agreed to 95 per cent reservation for locals in jobs. The last meeting was held on January 15. (PTI)
