Modi reaction to protests in India Ladakh may alienate a vital community
The geopolitically sensitive region of Ladakh in northern India recently experienced an unusual wave of anger after four civilians were killed in a protest by police, and a popular environmental activ
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Known for its stark beauty and strategic importance in South Asia, India northern Ladakh region had remained relatively calm for decades, despite being outlined by some of the most volatile borders in the world. That changed on September 24, after weeks of demonstrations and protests culminated in some of the worst violence in the area since the late 1980s.
Four died and dozens were injured after police opened fire when protesters – who had been peacefully demonstrating for weeks prior – set alight a local office of India ruling BJP (Bharatiya Janta Party), injuring security personnel. India Home Ministry said police fired in “self-defense” and blamed the violence on “provocative speeches” by Sonam Wangchuk, a popular climate activist who had led the demonstrations since September 10 by going on hunger strike. Wangchuk was subsequently arrested under India stringent National Security Act, for allegedly inciting violence.
The protests in Ladakh and, more significantly, New Delhi reaction to them, do not bode well for the Modi-led government, eroding trust in a region that has historically aligned with India central government during wars and frequent scuffles along the Line of Actual Control (LAC): the de facto line that separates Indian-controlled territory from territory controlled by China.
Growing demands for autonomy
The growing discontentment among Ladakhi people – particularly the younger generations – has been brewing for at least six years.
Ladakh was semi-autonomous until 2019 when the BJP government split it from the former Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir. Under the new law, Ladakh lost its ability to self govern and was folded into India direct administrative control. At the time, many Ladakhi people including Wangchuk accepted the new administration, unlike in neighbouring Kashmir, which suffered a spate of violence and crackdown on any dissent.
But over time, Ladakhis began to feel that direct control from the centre did not work in their favour. The ruling BJP party within the territory agreed to autonomy: a promise that has not been met.
"People realised that losing all autonomy was a problem. We lost control over the land, over our own employment and many important decisions are in the hands of bureaucrats who dont have knowledge of the people or culture," says Mohommad Ramzan Khan, a local lawyer who was born and raised in Ladakh capital Leh. Khan is a member of the Leh Apex Body, one of the groups responsible for organising the protests. "We had been appealing for statehood – some legislative control or constitutional safeguard that would give local people agency," he says.
One of the most pressing issues aside from widespread unemployment, according to Khan, is how Ladakh fragile lands and ecosystems have been handled. "The land is linked to the culture here, and its ecosystem is very vulnerable to all of these industries and hotels that are opening," he explains. Since bringing Ladakh under its control, the government has announced large-scale tourism, solar and industrial projects in Ladakh that require thousands of acres of land. Khan adds that despite the rampant development, Ladakhs youth remain unemployed.
Ladakhs local advocacy bodies, which mainly comprised the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance, had been appealing for autonomy for years, but the Modi-led central government continues to ignore the demands. The frustrated Ladakhi population, led largely by the two groups and Sonam Wangchuk, began a formal demonstration on September 10. Wangchuk – considered a hero by many for his environmental work – went on a hunger strike along with his followers, refusing to eat until their demands were met.
A kind of Gen-Z revolution
The protests remained peaceful until the 14th day of the hunger strike, when two elderly demonstrators on hunger strike collapsed and had to be hospitalized. This was the turning point that, according to Khan, spurred Ladakh youth to join the movement.
Khan was shocked by what he saw the next day. Martyrs Park, where the protests were taking place, was so full of protesters there was barely any space to move. "There must have been six or seven thousand people there. I hadn’t expected it at all." Khan adds that most of the protesters on that day were young, and as Wangchuk himself said in a video statement, "It was an outburst of youth, a kind of Gen-Z revolution, that brought them to the streets."
Khan says the younger generation "seemed frustrated with all of us appealing for peaceful protests" and became rowdy. "They threw stones, torched a police vehicle and then went up to the BJP office and burnt it. I think they were fed up with us too. They had lost that faith in government and democracy."
Sonam Wangchuk made public appeals to end the violence, and called off his own hunger strike before his arrest on September 26. Since the clashes, a curfew has been in place in several parts of the territory.
2025-10-01
By
Anushka Tripathi
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