Social activist Sonam Wangchuk, who was advocating for statehood for Ladakh, has been detained under the National Security Act. A case has been filed against her for allegedly inciting the protesters to engage in violence during her hunger strike. What transpired? – Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been on a hunger strike for the last two weeks, has been calling for statehood for Ladakh and the inclusion of Ladakh in the 6th Schedule of the Constitution, which seeks to grant autonomy to the tribal regions in the northeastern states to safeguard their language, culture, civilization, economy, and livelihood rights. In this context, the youth wing of the organization ‘Le Apex Body’ initiated a complete shutdown protest in Ladakh the day before yesterday in support of her demonstration. However, it culminated in violence, resulting in 4 fatalities and 70 injuries. In light of this, the Union Home Ministry released a statement attributing the youth’s violent actions to Sonam Wangchuk’s speech. In response, Sonam Wangchuk stated, “The Union Home Ministry is attempting to portray me as a victim of the Ladakh violence. They are planning to arrest me and imprison me for two years. I am prepared to be arrested.
However, rather than liberating me, my arrest will only exacerbate the issues for the government. The BJP should abandon the politics of using me as a scapegoat for the problem. Instead of blaming me or the Congress party for the riots and issues, they should focus on identifying and addressing the root cause. They (the central government) may be adept at blame politics, but it does not always yield results. Now, intelligence will prove more effective than their deceit. The youth are already in a state of despair.” In this scenario, he has been arrested today. Will Wangchuk be taken to jail? No information has yet been disclosed regarding whether he will be taken to another undisclosed location. CBI officials are currently conducting an investigationMeanwhile, it has been revealed that the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives Ladakh, founded by Sonam Wangchuk, which is the cause of the protest, has received illegal funding from abroad. Moreover, Wangchuk also visited Pakistan on February 6. CBI officials have started an investigation into this. Furthermore, the central government yesterday cancelled the license granted to the Ladakh Educational and Cultural Movement led by Sonam Wangchuk under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA).
