Leh: With the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) rejecting the Centre’s draft on constitutional safeguards and democratic governance, Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra on Saturday expressed disappointment over the move and urged the region’s leaders to continue negotiations with mutual trust, patience and an open mind.
Addressing a press conference in Leh, Kundra said the 32-page proposal prepared by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs was dismissed within hours of being presented to the Ladakh representatives on October 16, a day after they held discussions with the Centre.
“The government of India is fully committed to finding a political solution at the earliest and to establishing a democratically elected body that fulfils the aspirations of the people of Ladakh,” the chief secretary said.
The LAB and KDA have maintained that the Centre’s proposal does not meet their demands for constitutional safeguards and a legislature with meaningful powers.
Kundra said the government had made concerted efforts to develop an alternative constitutional framework and asserted that further discussions were necessary to arrive at a mutually acceptable arrangement.
“It was surprising to see that the document was dismissed outright within just two hours of being received,” he said, adding that officials had spent three to four weeks preparing the proposal in good faith.
Explaining the framework, Kundra said the home ministry had shared a detailed document outlining a possible constitutional framework for Ladakh, following discussions with the region’s leaders on October 15.
“The document proposes a two-stage approach involving a constitutional amendment and a subsequent regulation under Article 240 of the Constitution, with provisions envisaged for a directly elected Union Territory-level body and safeguards concerning land, natural resources, culture and other issues raised by the representatives,” the chief secretary said.
He clarified that the document was intended to facilitate further discussion and was not the outcome of a concluded legislative process. The proposed constitutional provisions and the subsequent regulatory framework would require detailed examination and deliberation before being finalised, Kundra said.
Several institutional questions also remained open for consideration and examination, including the nomenclature and composition of the proposed body, the method of election, representation of women and underrepresented communities, and nominated and ex-officio members.
The authority responsible for conducting elections, delimitation of constituencies, electoral rolls, tenure and the relationship of the proposed body with existing institutions such as the LAHDCs, Panchayats and municipalities would also need to be examined.
The proposal envisages introducing a new constitutional provision, Article 371-K, specifically for Ladakh, followed by a separate regulation under Article 240 to define the functioning of the proposed institution, he said.
“Not every detail can be incorporated into a constitutional amendment. Therefore, a separate regulation would also be framed under Article 240,” Kundra said.
Appealing to the leaders involved in the dialogue, Kundra said mutual trust was essential for meaningful negotiations with an open mind. “Negotiations require an open mind, mutual trust and, above all, patience,” he said.
He said the government did not want to rush into an arrangement that could shape Ladakh’s governance for decades without ensuring that it met the expectations of the people.
“We must ensure that the framework ultimately established for Ladakh is one with which the people are satisfied, not only the political leaders but also ordinary citizens,” he said.
Kundra also urged the leadership not to allow disappointment over individual meetings to create a perception that the process had yielded no progress.
Seeking to underline the Centre’s efforts to address local concerns, Kundra cited the increase in reservation for local residents, recognition of regional languages and reservation for women in the hill councils.
He said reservation for Scheduled Tribes in Ladakh, which stood at 10 per cent in 2019, had been increased to 84 per cent for local people.
The LAB and KDA have expressed dissatisfaction with the home ministry’s proposal and maintained that their demands for constitutional safeguards and a legislature with executive, legislative and financial powers remain central to the negotiations.
The two sides will meet again in New Delhi on October 22 to discuss their respective proposals and attempt to bridge the differences.
Kundra expressed hope that the process would move towards a conclusion in the coming weeks and months, reiterating that the Centre remained committed to establishing a democratically elected body for Ladakh at the earliest.
“There is no reason for anyone to lose hope,” he said.
