Agitating groups of Ladakh are seriously thinking about boycotting the forthcoming election for the lone Lok Sabha seat of the cold desert as a mark of protest against the decision of the Union Government to reject their demands.
An important meeting of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) was held recently in which leaders of both groups thoroughly discussed the pros and cons of boycotting the Lok Sabha elections.
The meeting held on Wednesday was the first after the failure of the talks with the High-Powered Committee (HPC) of the Ministry of Home Affairs with the agitating groups held on March 4.
The meeting was held in Leh and attended by senior members from LAB and KDA. Leaders from Kargil and Leh discussed the option of boycotting the elections to protest against the indifferent attitude of the Centre against ignoring their demands for statehood and granting the sixth schedule of the constitution.
Leaders divided over boycotting elections
Sources said that during the two-hour-long meeting, leaders were divided on the issue of boycotting the parliamentary elections in Ladakh.
"Some leaders were not in favour of boycotting the elections. They suggested that instead of boycotting the polls, agitating groups must field a joint candidate on the Ladakh seat to snatch this seat from the BJP, sources said.
As consensus eluded all the leaders of LAB and KDA unanimously decided to hold another meeting and take a final call on the decision of boycotting parliamentary elections in Ladakh.
Notification for the Ladakh Lok Sabha seat will be issued on April 26 and May 3 will be the last date for filing nomination papers. Polling for this seat will be held on May 20.
It was decided that ongoing agitating should be further intensified to send a clear message to the BJP-led government that the people of Ladakh would not budge from their stand on two key demands.
KDA members to join hunger strike from March 24
To express solidarity with the activist-cum-educationist Sonam Wangchuk, all members of the KDA will also sit on the hunger strike from March 24.
The KDA members will end their hunger strike on March 26, coinciding with Sonam Wangchuk's 21-day fast. Both the organizations will hold massive protest rallies in Leh and Kargil towns on the same day.
The KDA has announced that all 11 members of the organization would sit on hunger strike at Gandhi Park from March 24 to March 27 in support of our demands for Statehood to Ladakh and its inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Crucial meeting with Centre's panel ended in a deadlock
As reported earlier, the fourth round of crucial meeting between agitating groups of Ladakh and the High Power Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs on March 4 ended in a deadlock.
As their meeting with the HPC ended in a deadlock, the representatives of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) met the Union Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence.
As per the agitating groups, the meeting with the Union Home Minister too did not result in any positive outcome. This was the first meeting of the Ladakh groups with the Union Home Minister since 2020.
