Congress’ sparse contribution to Ladakh Post-1995

The Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh was created on October 31, 2019, but a declaration to this effect was made on August 5, a couple of months earlier. This demand for conferring UT status on Ladakh was first raised in 1955 by Kushok Bakula Rinpoche. However, it was fulfilled after 64 years during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second tenure only. Kushok Bakula’s demand was carried forward by his nephew Thupstan Chhewang, who founded the Ladakh Union Territory Front (LUTF) in 2000. Chhewang was a BJP MP till late 2018, when he resigned from the party.

The Ladakhi leadership has now demanded that Ladakh should have two Lok Sabha MPs instead of one. However, there is a freeze of fresh delimitation nationwide due to 84th Constitutional Amendment of 2001. At present, the territorial limits of assembly, as also Lok Sabha segments, are frozen until after the first census that takes place after 2026. The 1971 census data had served as the foundation for the last delimitation.

Some Ladakhis are also demanding full statehood with a legislative assembly, but that is problematic on one count. In the Jammu & Kashmir assembly earlier, there were only four MLAs from Ladakh, one each from Leh, Nubra, Kargil and Zanskar. How many MLAs can be there now if this demand for an assembly is conceded? It is difficult to increase the number to double or triple as compared to earlier arrangements. That means that an assembly of 8 or 10 will need to be constituted in Ladakh.

Jumping into the ongoing debate in Ladakh, senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi has demanded full statehood for Ladakh. Endorsing the demand of a section of Ladakhis for statehood on her X account on March 13, she said the demand was genuine. In her post, Priyanka said the Union Government was ignoring this demand. She is right, as successive Union Governments headed by her party ignored and used strong-arm tactics to put down agitations in Ladakh over the past few decades.

For ten years, from 2004 to 2014, UPA I and UPA II ruled the country with Dr Manmohan Singh of the Congress as Prime Minister. Have you ever heard of statehood for Ladakh during this decade? No, absolutely not, as even some MLAs and the Leh Lok Sabha seat were represented by the Congress. So, what has changed now?

Incidentally, the Congress was in power in the erstwhile State of J&K, of which Ladakh was a part till it became UT. Its tenure in power lasted from November 2002 to November 2014. During these 12 years, the Congress ran coalition Governments with the PDP and the National Conference.

The fact of the matter is that Priyanka is trying to fish in troubled waters as an agitation is going on in Ladakh demanding statehood. The Ladakh agitation is being led by a joint Ladakhi leadership from Leh and Kargil districts which does not recognise political parties.

By jumping into the debate for statehood, Priyanka is apparently trying to make the Congress relevant in the region. She is apparently also trying to queer the pitch for the Union Home Ministry as it is engaged in discussions with the Ladakhi leaders.

It bears mention here that the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) in Leh was created in August 1995. This was done by the Congress Government to sabotage the growing demand of UT status for Ladakh.