The arrest and incarceration of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk in relation with the violence in Leh last week and the attempts by the Union Territory’s police to link him to hostile neighbouring countries betray the Union government’s total disconnect with the ground realities and the resultant ad hoc and untenable positions it so often takes when faced with real-life political crises.
All that the DGP had to say on it was that the police had recently apprehended a Pakistani intelligence operative who was reportedly monitoring Mr Wangchuk’s activities and “relaying information to handlers across the border”. His attempts to portray Mr Wangchuk’s attendance at an event hosted by The Dawn in Pakistan and his so-called visit to Bangladesh as covert links to those countries are laughable for an Indian citizen’s travel to these countries are possible only with the knowledge of the Union government and always carried out under watch of the Central security agencies. Thus, the police chief making out a case which even Indian security agencies do not endorse only highlights the absurdity of the entire exercise. It may also be noticed that the Leh Apex Body, spearheading the protest, has categorically denied links to foreign hands.
Violence is reprehensible and has no place in democratic discourse, but the Union government must convince itself first and then others as to how the four key demands the protestors have placed before the it are against the national interest. The demands are specific: Statehood for Ladakh, Sixth Schedule tribal safeguards, separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil, and a Public Service Commission to address youth unemployment in Ladakh. Each one of them calls for careful consideration by the Centre and discussion with the people of the UT. Instead, the government is trying the age-old trick of maintaining a studied silence on the issue and then using force when matters come to a head. Stop flexing your muscle before your own people!
