After a series of discussions over the past two years, the agitating groups from Ladakh have finally agreed to implement a 15-year prospective residence requirement for acquiring domicile status in the Union Territory of Ladakh.
Agitating groups, including the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), have reached a consensus with the Ministry of Home Affairs' High-Powered Committee (HPC) to grant domicile status to individuals who have resided continuously in Ladakh for 15 years.
A person who has continuously lived in Ladakh for 15 years will now be eligible for a domicile certificate in the Union Territory. It is important to note that the same rule is applied in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The agreement, finalized during a meeting held on May 27 at North Block, aligns Ladakh's domicile policy with that of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the groups' demand for a 30-year residency requirement will undergo legal review.
The agreement was described as the "biggest achievement" of the HPC meeting chaired by the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai.
According to Ladakh leaders, the MHA also assured them that it would consult the Law Ministry and legal experts "to examine the feasibility" of the 30-year residency requirement for domicile status—a key demand raised by the LAB and KDA during the meeting.
"Consensus reached in today's Ladakh High-Powered Committee meeting with MHA: To qualify as a domicile of Ladakh, a citizen must show continuous residence from 2019 (15-year prospective).
Apex Body & KDA pushed for a 30-year domicile — MHA agreed to review its legal aspect. Next meeting on Public Service Commission set for next month!" posted Sajjad Kargili, one of the leaders of the agitating groups, on social media.
Terming the development a positive step, LAB Co-chairman Chering Dorjay said the issue of domicile had persisted for a long time, and it is a matter of satisfaction that it has now been resolved.
He added that the agitating Ladakh groups had strongly advocated for a 30-year continuous residency requirement for domicile status. "The government has assured us that it will examine the legal aspects of this demand and respond in the next meeting scheduled for next month," he said.
Leaders of the LAB and KDA attended the meeting, which primarily focused on domicile rights, recruitment in government jobs, and the establishment of a dedicated Public Service Commission (PSC) for the region.
The last formal meeting between LAB and KDA leaders and the MHA was held on January 15. A follow-up meeting, initially proposed for February 15, did not materialize, with the MHA reportedly opting for backchannel discussions to build consensus on key issues before making any announcements.
The HPC meeting, initially scheduled for May 20, was deferred because the date coincided closely with the birth anniversary of His Eminence Kushok Bakula Rinpoche, a prominent Buddhist leader, on May 19.
In response, LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjay sent a letter to the Ministry of Home Affairs requesting the meeting be rescheduled to May 23 or 24. However, the request was declined due to the unavailability of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, the HPC chairman, in New Delhi on those dates.
The LAB and KDA leaders emphasized that their priority was on resolving issues related to domicile rights and reservations for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).
They believed that settling these matters would pave the way for the advertisement of government jobs, particularly in the gazetted cadre—an issue pending since August 5, 2019, when Ladakh was carved out of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and granted Union Territory status.
