VoL Desk, September 17: Vikalp Sangam General Assembly, a network of 85 organisations and movements across India, expressed solidarity with the ‘Delhi Chalo’ footmarch that people of Ladakh have embarked on, on 1^st September.

The Assembly stated that this Yatra highlights continued neglect of Ladakh’s legitimate demands for special Constitutional status, enabling its people to protect their land, culture, environment and economic interests. It is in the tradition of Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent marches against colonial injustice, such as the Salt (Dandi) March. We commit to join the Yatra on its route and in Delhi on 2^nd October.

The primary demands by the citizens of Ladakh are inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, statehood, separate Parliamentary seats for Kargil and Leh, and a public service commission for Ladakh enabling its youth to get jobs.

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The assembly stated that the four-point agenda of Ladakh are crucial to safeguard Ladakh’s ecologically and culturally unique and fragile status, especially against unrestricted and inappropriate land use, commercialisation, and excessive tourism. Protecting Ladakh’s ecological integrity is also vital for the climatic and water security of South Asia as a whole.

“The measures demanded are the bare minimum to enable genuine democracy, rather than centralised decision-making from New Delhi. And they are crucial for creating dignified employment opportunities for Ladakhi youth.”

As elaborated in a previous (Feb 2024) statement issued by the assembly, Special Constitutional status to Ladakh should empower the Kargil and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils to exercise control over land, natural resources including minerals, tourism, and development policy.

Additionally, we urge that Ladakh also be included in the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, if it is possible to include an area under both Schedules. This would include the application of the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) to empower Gram Sabhas and enable meaningful local self-governance. Both the 5^th and 6^th Schedules are in principle applicable to Ladakh given that more than 90 percent of the population are of Scheduled Tribe status.

Additionally, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006 should be expediently applied, especially to enable pastoral and other ecosystem-dependent communities to secure their collective rights over landscapes essential for their livelihoods.

“We are shocked at how the BJP, having promised 6^th Schedule status when Ladakh was converted into a Union Territory in 2019, has gone back on this. We urge the Government of India to agree to the demands of Ladakhi people. We also urge the people of Ladakh to continue strengthening their own internal democratic processes, so that communities and institutions like the Hill Council are able to resist decisions that adversely impact them and their environment, as also construct viable alternatives for meeting basic needs, aspirations, and the goals of well-being”, stated the statement issued by the Assembly.

We stand in solidarity with the people of Ladakh and wish the Delhi Chalo Yatra success!