MHA using tools of fear, intimidation and threats in Ladakh: Kargil Democratic Alliance

Supporters of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) stage a protest demanding statehood for Ladakh. File | Photo credit: ANI

A civil society group in Kargil, Ladakh, Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) on Saturday (Oct 24, 2026) likened the approach taken by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ladakh administration to that of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs and warned of street agitation if the MHA backed away from its May 22 agenda.

KDA Co-Chairman Asgar Ali Karbalai told a press conference in Kargil that the KDA and Leh Apex Body (LAB) would not back down from their demands for a legislature under proposed Article 239 of the AAA and constitutional guarantees under Article 371. Mr. Karbalai, a former lawmaker, also accused the MHA of trying to “disarm the people”.

“The MHA and Ladakh administration have adopted the politics of pharaohs by using tools of fear, intimidation and threats. They think it will force us to submit to them and say ‘yes boss’. Don’t push the people of Ladakh to the wall. If MHA does not return to the May 22 agenda, we will be forced to hit the streets, go to jail and agitate for our legitimate demands,” Karbalai said.

Mr Karbalai, who was accompanied by Ladakh MP Haji Haneefa and KDA member Sajjad Kargili, said the October 15 presentation was an attempt to push for a body similar to the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) and also establish a bureaucracy over the proposed elected legislature.

“The offer of a NEFA-type agency is a slide from the May 22 draft of the mightiest and strongest safeguards. Such an agency existed in the Northeast 70 years ago and Ladakh is being pushed back. The MHA sub-committee’s presentation now invokes Article 240, which vests all powers in the Governor, Legislature and Presidency of India. We have rejected this empty proposal,” Mr. Karbalai said.

The KDA accused the Ladakh administration of flooding the region with notifications on Nautor lands, liquor licences, privatization in education and hollow panchayats and hill councils. “This is an attempt to play with the emotions and aspirations of Ladakh. If anything happens in Ladakh, MHA and the Ladakh administration will be responsible,” Karbalai said.

The MHA on May 22 promised a customized sui generis model with the best provisions of Article 371 incorporated in a special part ‘K’ to have a set of constitutional guarantees for Ladakh. Civil society groups in Ladakh were expecting a draft from the MHA in a meeting scheduled for October 22, which was postponed, Mr. Kargili said.

“Instead, a unilateral approach is being taken to impose new things on us. Several unilateral decisions taken recently are akin to murdering democracy. Declaring 100 constituencies cannot replace the power already eroded from hill councils and panchayats. If Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar is facing charges of taking away 13 lakh votes, the entire representation in Ladab has been stolen,” said Kargili.

The KDA appealed to the people to oppose “this attempt to make the people of Ladakh lose their voice”. “In Ladakh, it’s the calm before the storm,” he said.

Published – 24 Oct 2026 22:38 IST