{"id":130495,"date":"2026-10-25T10:43:55","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T05:13:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=130495"},"modified":"2026-10-25T12:48:27","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T07:18:27","slug":"ladakh-governance-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/ladakh-governance-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Ladakh Governance Crisis: Statehood and Sixth Schedule"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Ladakh Governance Crisis Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Centre took two significant steps in the seven-year-old Union Territory of Ladakh recently: a Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) sub-committee shared a 32-page draft proposal with civil society leaders, while the Lieutenant Governor\u2019s administration announced <\/span><b>Sankoo<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as Ladakh\u2019s eighth district.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Though seemingly unrelated, both moves reflect the Centre\u2019s evolving approach to Ladakh\u2019s persistent demands for Statehood and inclusion in the Sixth Schedule \u2014 demands that have fuelled recurring street protests since Ladakh was carved out as a UT from Jammu &amp; Kashmir in 2019.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Why the Draft Proposal Was Rejected<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) jointly rejected the draft in principle.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Key grievances:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The draft marked a significant departure from assurances made during earlier sub-committee meetings.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It failed to address the demand for a legislative assembly.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It offered no constitutional safeguards under <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/article-371\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Article 371<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> tailored to Ladakh\u2019s unique circumstances.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LAB and KDA urged the MHA to instead accept their own draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), submitted recently in Leh.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Notably, not all civil society groups agree: The Civil Society Forum of Ladakh, led by ex-MP Thupstan Chhewang, welcomed the MHA\u2019s roadmap \u2014 exposing growing internal friction among Ladakh\u2019s civil society organisations.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Background: The High-Powered Committee (HPC)<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amid rising protests, the MHA constituted a High-Powered Committee (HPC) in 2023, chaired by MoS Home Affairs Nityanand Rai.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>HPC\u2019s Mandate<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Protect Ladakh\u2019s unique culture and language, factoring in its strategic location.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Safeguard land and employment for locals.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Promote inclusive development.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Empower the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (LAHDCs) of Leh and Kargil.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recommend constitutional safeguards to secure the above.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>The May 2026 Commitment \u2014 And Why the New Draft Fell Short<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Centre-Ladakh talks in May 2026 produced minutes stating:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Statehood would remain the long-term aspiration.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a first step, a \u201ccustomised model of governance\u201d via a UT-level elected body with executive, financial, and legislative powers would be established.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A \u201csui generis\u201d (unique) model under Article 371 was proposed.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A key agreement: the <\/span><b>elected body<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> would gain <\/span><b>control and supervision over civil servants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with Transaction of Business Rules to define power-sharing between the elected body and the Lieutenant Governor.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LAB and KDA\u2019s complaint: The new draft instead resembles a <\/span><b>North-East Frontier Agency-type arrangement<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 closer to a Territorial Council model with power concentrated in the LG\u2019s administration, falling far short of the legislature-backed sui generis model promised in May.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>New Districts: A Parallel Governance Push<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since 1947, Ladakh (population ~3.5 lakh, spread over 59,146 sq km of challenging cold-desert terrain) had only two districts: Leh (Buddhist-majority) and Kargil (Shia Muslim-majority).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>2026 Reform<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Creation of six new districts \u2014 Sankoo, Sham, Nubra, Changthang, Zanskar, and Drass \u2014 aimed at bringing administration closer to people.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each new district will get a hill council, with locals electing 26 members per council \u2014 intended to boost local representation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Existing hill councils<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: LAHDC-Leh (1995) and LAHDC-Kargil (2003) historically set local priorities and budgets, but their influence declined after 2019 under direct Central rule.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Ladakh administration is also pushing a <\/span><b>three-tier representation system<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 elections for panchayats, municipalities, and hill councils \u2014 to strengthen participatory governance in a UT that still lacks a legislature.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Centre\u2019s twin moves \u2014 a contested governance draft and the creation of new districts \u2014 reveal a dual-track strategy for Ladakh: offering administrative decentralisation through more districts and hill councils, while sidestepping the core political demand for a full legislature and constitutional safeguards.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Ladakh\u2019s civil society, this distinction matters deeply \u2014 administrative proximity is not the same as political empowerment.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Until the gap between the Centre\u2019s May 2026 promises and its October draft is bridged, Ladakh\u2019s demand for Statehood and Sixth Schedule protection is likely to remain a live political fault line, even as governance on the ground gradually decentralises.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b> <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/epaper.thehindu.com\/ccidist-ws\/th\/th_international\/issues\/210558\/OPS\/GN4GM7SHE.1+GTBGN4U63.1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">TH<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ladakh governance crisis deepens over statehood, Sixth Schedule safeguards and a rejected Centre proposal. Explore new districts, hill councils and political demands.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":130521,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[11142,60,22,59],"class_list":["post-130495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","tag-ladakh-governance-crisis","tag-mains-articles","tag-upsc-current-affairs","tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","no-featured-image-padding"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=130495"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130495\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":130520,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130495\/revisions\/130520"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/130521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=130495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=130495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=130495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}