New Delhi: The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) have decided to continue their agitation demanding statehood for Ladakh and safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution even the Home Ministry is mulling the idea to address their concern through special provisions under Article 371.
Talking to ETV Bharat, Qamar Ali Akhoon, a senior member of the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference said that they did not get any positive response to their demand from the Home Ministry.
“Home Minister Amit Shah during our recent meeting in New Delhi assured that the central government will ensure constitutional safeguard of the people of Ladakh under Article 371. But, we have been demanding a separate state and inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution,” said Akhoon who is also the co-chairman of the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA).
Article 371 ensures the protection of the economic and cultural interests, combat local challenges and protect customary laws of the specific region. The special provision under Article 371 is in force in Maharashtra, several northeastern States like Sikkim, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and others.
It is worth mentioning that a six-member delegation of LAB and KDA from the Union Territory of Ladakh had a meeting with Home Minister Shah and representatives of the High Powered Committee (HPC) set up to look into the issues of Ladakh in New Delhi on Monday.
“The meeting was not positive. In fact, there was no positive response either from Government representatives or from the Home Minister,” said Akhoon.
Akhoon said that they have four-point demands including statehood for Ladakh, safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India, two Lok Sabha seats for the union territory and employment opportunities for the youth.
“We did not get any positive response over Statehood and Sixth Schedule. Regarding our demand for two separate parliamentary seats, the Home Minister said that it will materialize during the delimitation process which will take place in 2026. He (Amit Shah) said that the issue of jobs, land, and identity employment will be addressed through Article 371,” said Akhoon.
On earlier occasions also, the Centre rejected the demand for a separate State and Sixth Schedule for the union territory carved out in 2019.
Under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, the autonomous district councils have specific legislative, executive, judicial and financial powers. The Sixth Schedule is in force in the tribal areas of Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram and Assam. In fact, such councils can make laws on certain specified matters like land, forests, canal water, shifting cultivation, village administration, inheritance of property, marriage and divorce, and social customs among others.
Talking to this correspondent Sajjad Kargili, a senior member of the Kargil Democratic Alliance, echoed that the government did not give any positive response to their demand for a separate State and Sixth Schedule.
“We will not withdraw our demand for the sixth schedule and Statehood of Ladakh. It is a matter of the home ministry whether they provide Article 371 or anything, but we will continue our demand for a sixth schedule,” said Kargili and added “We will continue our discussion on the issue of separate state and Sixth Schedule.”
The Home Ministry initially constituted a high-powered committee on January 2, 2023, but it was reconstituted on November 30, 2023 following objections raised regarding its composition and agenda.
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