Wangchuk, a 2018 Ramon Magsaysay Award winner, led a hunger strike from 10 September, demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule protections.
Published Sep 26, 2025 | 7:58 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 26, 2025 | 7:58 PM
Sonam Wangchuk. (Screengrab)
Synopsis: Four people died, and over 70 were injured, prompting a curfew in Leh, the region’s main town. Protests, initially peaceful for two weeks, were led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who condemned the violence as a “Gen Z outburst” driven by youth frustration.
The Ladakh police on Friday, 26 September, arrested climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, a day after Union Home Ministry accused him for the violent protests in the region.
Wangchuk, a 2018 Ramon Magsaysay Award winner, led a hunger strike from 10 September, demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule protections.
According to PTI report, Wangchuk was taken into custody by a police party led by Ladakh Police chief S D Singh Jamwal at 2:30 pm, the officials said, adding that he has been shifted out of Ladakh.
The report further noted that, while there was no official word on the charges pressed against Wangchuk, sources within the Ladakh administration indicated that the stringent National Security Act (NSA) has been invoked against the climate activist.
Four people died, and over 70 were injured, prompting a curfew in Leh, the region’s main town. Protests, initially peaceful for two weeks, were led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who condemned the violence as a “Gen Z outburst” driven by youth frustration.
Centre blamed Wangchuk’s “provocative” speeches, referencing Arab Spring and Nepal’s Gen Z protests, for inciting the mob. The Home Ministry accused him of leaving for his village without calming the situation after ending his hunger strike.
Ladakh became a Union Territory in 2019 after Article 370’s revocation and the division of Jammu and Kashmir. Unlike Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh lacks a legislature, leaving it under direct central control.
This has sparked discontent over a perceived lack of local governance. Both Buddhist-majority Leh and Muslim-majority Kargil united under the Apex Body of Leh and Kargil Democratic Alliance, demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule protections for tribal autonomy and environmental safeguards.
The violence followed a shutdown called by the Leh Apex Body’s youth wing after 15 hunger strikers were hospitalised. Protesters were frustrated by the government’s delay in addressing demands, particularly after the Home Ministry set 6 October as the next meeting date, deemed too distant by Wangchuk.
