SRINAGAR: Four protesters were killed and 58 wounded Wednesday when police and paramilitary forces allegedly opened fire on demonstrators in Leh demanding Sixth Schedule protections and statehood for Ladakh.The deaths marked the first fatal violence in Ladakh since it became a Union territory in 2019 after Article 370‘s abrogation and bifurcation of J&K. The names of the dead-men aged 19, 20, 23 and 46-have not been released.Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on a 35-day hunger strike for Sixth Schedule status but ended it after 14 days Wednesday, said youths erupted in anger after two hunger strikers collapsed Tuesday and were hospitalised in critical condition. “That moved the youths of Ladakh and they came out Wednesday in thousands to express solidarity at Martyrs’ Ground in Leh,” Wangchuk said. “Some of them have lost limbs.”
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Also read: Ladakh violence – ‘Gen Z revolution’ or ‘conspiracy motivated by politics’?He said about 2,000 broke from the larger crowd and began marching, allegedly burning a police vehicle, a govt office and a BJP office.Police initially used tear gas and lathi charges before firing live rounds as the crowd hurled stones, wounding at least 20 security personnel, according to officials. Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, designed for tribal areas in the Northeast, grants special protections over land, resources and culture through autonomous councils. Ladakhis have pressed for similar safeguards since 2019, warning of demographic and industrial pressures. In Jan 2023, Union home ministry set up a high-powered committee after sustained protests by Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA). The last round of talks on May 27 produced a domicile policy but little else. The ministry announced another meeting for Oct 6, but delays have fuelled anger. LG Kavinder Gupta called the violence a conspiracy to disturb peace in Ladakh. “For the past few days, a fast was observed in Ladakh, and we know fasting is part of a democratic system. But in the past two days, people have been provoked by comparisons to Nepal and Bangladesh.Also read: CBI launches probe against Sonam Wangchuk for alleged FCRA violation; activist says ‘guns blazing on us’Some threatened to set fire to political party offices. We consider such methods against the system of democracy,” he said, without mentioning Wangchuk’s hunger strike. Ladakh MP Haji Mohmad Haneefa Jan accused security forces of “disproportionate force” and the administration of “complete failure”. “Ladakhi people are very peaceful. The protesters could have been handled with a lathi charge,” Jan said. Leh’s district magistrate has ordered Section 163 of BNSS, banning rallies and marches without written approval. Reinforcements have been deployed. On Monday, LAB affiliate Apex Youth and Religious Youth called a shutdown supporting Wangchuk’s hunger strike. Before his strike beginning Sept 9, Wangchuk accused BJP of reneging on its 2020 promise of Sixth Schedule status in Ladakh Hill Council manifesto.
