Select Language:
On Thursday, police officers in Leh conducted patrols in the northern city following deadly protests over demands for increased autonomy in occupied Ladakh. Security personnel responded with live fire, resulting in at least five fatalities and approximately 100 injuries, including 30 police officers.
The typically lively city, popular with tourists, resembled a ghost town, with major streets barricaded by coils of razor wire and heavily guarded by riot-equipped police, according to an AFP reporter. A physician at Leh’s SNM Hospital reported treating around 100 individuals injured since Wednesday, some of whom were law enforcement personnel.
“We’ve performed surgeries on six patients; three sustained gunshot wounds, while others suffered internal bleeding in the chest and fractured ribs,” the doctor, who preferred to remain anonymous, said.
Protests began on Wednesday as crowds gathered to advocate for greater self-governance in Ladakh, a sparsely inhabited desert region with a population of roughly 300,000, bordering China and Pakistan.
The Ministry of Home Affairs in India stated that an unruly mob had assaulted police, injuring over 30 officers. Protesters set fire to a police vehicle and the offices of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In response, authorities used tear gas and batons to disperse the assembly.
The government explained that police had to open fire in self-defense, which regrettably resulted in some casualties but did not specify the number of deaths. An anonymous police officer told AFP that five people had been killed in the incident.
Thinley, a 33-year-old shop owner, was shot in the leg, and expressed frustration at the government’s failure to listen to protesters’ demands. “We’re exhausted by their neglect,” he said from his hospital bed.
Jigmet Stanzin, 23, was injured when he attempted to throw back what he believed was a tear gas canister; it exploded, shattering his hand.
A police unit secured the vandalized BJP office along with the wreckage of a burned security vehicle. Paras Pandey, a 27-year-old tourist, wandered the highway out of Leh seeking transportation. “Everything’s shut down. I haven’t eaten since yesterday. All I saw was chaos, smoke, and wrecked vehicles,” he said.
Ladakh’s residents are roughly half Muslim and 40% Buddhist. It is designated as a “Union Territory,” meaning it elects members to India’s parliament but is administered directly from New Delhi.
Wednesday’s demonstrations were in solidarity with activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on hunger strike demanding either full statehood for Ladakh or constitutional safeguards for its tribal communities, land, and fragile environment. The Indian government alleged that the protests were incited by Wangchuk’s provocative speeches and indicated ongoing discussions about governance reforms.
In 2019, Modi’s administration separated Ladakh from Indian-controlled Jammu and Kashmir, establishing direct control over both. The government has yet to fulfill its promise to integrate Ladakh into the “Sixth Schedule” of India’s constitution, which would empower local populations to create their own laws. Omar Abdullah, chief minister of the former Jammu and Kashmir state, remarked that residents of Ladakh feel “betrayed and furious.”
India maintains a sizable military presence in Ladakh, especially in areas disputed with China. Tensions escalated in 2020 with clashes that led to at least 20 Indian and 4 Chinese soldiers being killed.
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Gemini AI
Grok AI
