Leh: A massive protest erupted in Ladakh's Leh on Wednesday morning between the police and agitators demanding statehood and the inclusion of the union territory under the Sixth Schedule. Protesters also vandalised an office of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and set it on fire in Leh. At least 4 people reportedly died in the clashes.
According to reports, the clashes broke out after two residents who were sitting on a hunger strike for the past 15 days with climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, were hospitalised. The hunger strike led by Wangchuk was also part of the ongoing agitation in the region.
The protest erupted days ahead of a fresh round of talks between the Centre and Ladakh representatives, comprising members of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA).
Notably, the talks are scheduled to take place on October 6.
The LAB youth wing had given a call for protest and shutdown after two of 15 people, who were on a 35-day hunger strike since September 10, were shifted to a hospital after their condition deteriorated on Tuesday evening.
A large number of police personnel have been deployed in the area to avoid any untoward incident. So far, there are no reports of any injuries in the clashes.
In February this year also, a large number of locals participated in massive protests with bold placards and slogans demanding statehood for Ladakh.
On January 23, a proposal for the official status of 'statehood' was submitted to the Union Home Ministry, which emphasised the idea of a separate state and constituency for Ladakh to sort out the scorching socio-political and financial issues.
According to the Ladakh Hill Development Council Leh, the literacy rate in the district of Leh is 63.56 among females and 86.31 in the male- population, but the recruitment opportunities are quite less as per the population density.
