SRINAGAR: Fourteen more individuals arrested in connection with the September 24 violence in Leh were released after a local court granted them bail, lawyers confirmed, marking another significant development in the tense aftermath of the unrest that erupted during a hunger strike led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk.
According to Mohammad Shafi Lassu, president of the Bar Association, Leh, “Today, 14 individuals were released from jail. Thirteen were granted interim bail by the court, while one had been granted bail earlier but was released today due to a documentation issue.”
Of the 39 people arrested on the day of the violence, 38 have now been released on bail. Lassu added that around 70 people were detained in total and that more bail hearings are expected in the coming days. Last week, the court granted interim bail to 26 others.
The violence broke out during the final phase of Wangchuk’s 35-day hunger strike that had drawn wide participation from local residents. The protests—centred on demands for Ladakh’s statehood and inclusion under the Constitution’s Sixth Schedule—turned violent after clashes between demonstrators and security forces. Protesters set fire to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) office, the Leh Hill Council building, and several vehicles. Security personnel opened fire during the ensuing chaos, leaving four people dead and several others injured.
Wangchuk ended his hunger strike soon after the violence and was detained two days later under the National Security Act (NSA). He was subsequently shifted to Jodhpur Jail in Rajasthan.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Monday sought responses from the Centre and the Union Territory administration of Ladakh on a writ petition filed by Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali J Angmo, challenging his detention under the NSA and seeking his immediate release.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria refused to pass any interim order on her plea to obtain the grounds of detention but posted the case for hearing on October 14.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Angmo, argued that she needed access to the grounds of detention to challenge the order, but Solicitor General Tushar Mehta maintained that the grounds had already been served on Wangchuk himself, and that there was “no legal requirement” to share them with the spouse.
Mehta accused the petitioner of trying to “create hype” around an “emotive issue” and dismissed allegations that Wangchuk had been denied medical assistance or contact with his family. The court, however, directed that Wangchuk’s medical needs be addressed under prison rules.
Angmo’s plea, filed through senior lawyer Vivek Tankha, termed the detention “illegal, arbitrary, and unconstitutional,” violating Articles 14, 19, 21, and 22 of the Constitution. It asserted that Wangchuk, an internationally recognised innovator and environmentalist, had always adopted peaceful, Gandhian means to highlight Ladakh’s ecological and democratic concerns.
While legal proceedings continue in New Delhi, Leh remains on edge despite administrative claims of calm. The Ladakh administration stated on Monday that “the Union Territory remains peaceful, with schools, offices, and markets reopened,” after the gradual lifting of curfew restrictions. Schools up to class eight have resumed since October 3, though prohibitory orders remain in force, and mobile internet services are still suspended.
However, the Leh Apex Body (LAB)—one of the two key organisations leading the agitation—disputed the administration’s assertion of normalcy. “Nothing is normal as long as the internet remains suspended and mass arrests continue,” LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjay told reporters in Leh.
Dorjay said the government’s measures were “cosmetic” and insisted that peace could not return through “intimidation.” He alleged that village heads (numberdars) who had merely informed locals about the hunger strike were being harassed by authorities. “Numberdars are an integral part of our cultural fabric. Targeting them is unjustified and an attack on our community values,” he said, demanding their release and an end to the alleged harassment.
Dorjay reiterated LAB’s commitment to a peaceful struggle for Ladakh’s statehood and constitutional safeguards. “The government must immediately lift all restrictions, release all detainees, and restore mobile internet services to rebuild public confidence,” he said.
Ladakh’s Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta chaired a high-level meeting on Monday to review the Union Territory’s security situation. “The UT remains peaceful, with schools, offices, and markets reopened,” said a statement from his office on X. The L-G has been holding daily security reviews since the September 24 incident and directed officials to “remain vigilant and prioritise peace and development.”
As the courts deliberate on Wangchuk’s detention and local leaders demand restoration of civil liberties, Ladakh’s uneasy calm underscores a deeper divide—between a government keen to project normalcy and a public that insists normalcy cannot exist without justice and open communication.
