The Union government’s decision to release from jail climate activist in Ladakh Sonam Wangchuk six months after he was arrested under the draconian National Security Act to “facilitate dialogue” is a welcome move, and moreover, a welcome realisation on the part of the government about the folly of taking a confrontationist attitude towards legitimate demands of the people.
Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, Dr. Gitanjali J. Angmo, has moved a habeas corpus petition in the Supreme Court against the preventive detention of her husband under the National Security Act (NSA), 1980, following violent protests on September 24 in Leh.
This week, deadly protests shook Leh, Ladakh, as protests by thousands of people who demanded statehood led to the deaths of four people and dozens of others injured by security forces. It has since been placed under a strict curfew and dozens more have since been arrested in an effort to restore order.
The government of India has introduced new transformative domicile and reservation policies for the Union Territory of Ladakh in response to long standing demands for local job security and cultural preservation after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
