SRINAGAR: The next round of subcommittee-level talks between the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ladakh leaders will be held in New Delhi on May 22, with representatives of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) set to participate in the dialogue over Ladakh’s long-pending political and constitutional demands.
Senior leaders from both organisations confirmed on Wednesday that they had accepted the invitation for the meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 10 AM and will be chaired by senior MHA officials along with officers of the Ladakh administration.
The talks come after months of uncertainty over the next engagement between the Centre and Ladakhi leaders following the last meeting of the High-Powered Committee (HPC) held in New Delhi on February 4 under the chairmanship of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai.
LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjay Lakruk said three members from the Apex Body would attend the meeting. “I, along with Sonam Wangchuk and Lama Dorjay Stanzin, will represent the LAB,” Lakruk said.
An equal number of representatives from the Kargil Democratic Alliance are also expected to attend. Sources said the KDA delegation is likely to include Asgar Ali Karbalai and Sajjad Kargili besides another leader.
Veteran Ladakhi leader and former MP Thupstan Chhewang, who recently distanced himself from the LAB leadership, has also been invited to the meeting along with senior BJP leader and former Leh Hill Council chairman Tashi Gyalson, Ladakh MP Mohd Hanifa Jan and Kargil Hill Council Chairman-cum-CEC Dr Mohd Jaffer Akhoon.
Chief Secretary of Ladakh Ashish Kundra will also participate in the discussions.
The LAB and KDA have been jointly pursuing a four-point agenda since 2021, including statehood for Ladakh, constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, separate public service commissions and job protections for local residents.
Lakruk said the LAB would continue to press for statehood and Sixth Schedule status during the talks. He added that the organisation had also requested that Supreme Court lawyer Vikram Hegde be allowed to accompany the delegation for legal assistance.
The May 22 meeting will be the first subcommittee-level engagement since Vinai Kumar Saxena assumed charge as the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh in March. Saxena had earlier announced the date of the talks ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Ladakh on April 30.
Since taking office, Saxena has initiated outreach efforts and expressed confidence in the dialogue process while pushing for revival of development projects in the Union Territory.
Sources said the MHA has not circulated any formal written agenda for the meeting and the participants were informed verbally through the administration.
Meanwhile, indications have emerged that the Centre could announce the Ladakh Subordinate Administrative Services (LSAS) shortly. Sources said the proposal is in the final stages after the UT administration recently sent a detailed note to the MHA outlining recruitment rules, vacancy positions and a proposal for the UPSC to conduct examinations for the UT’s own administrative services cadre.
Officials said Ladakh currently has nearly 1,200 vacancies in the gazetted cadre, a number expected to rise further after the creation of five new districts, taking the total number of districts in Ladakh from two to seven.
However, despite possible movement on administrative safeguards, LAB and KDA leaders reiterated that their primary demands remain statehood and Sixth Schedule protections.
The upcoming talks are also taking place amid internal differences within the Leh Apex Body. Former co-chairman Thupstan Chhewang has publicly dissociated himself from the organisation’s present leadership, triggering concerns among sections of Ladakh society that divisions within the movement could weaken its negotiating position with the Centre.
The LAB and KDA have been agitating for over five years seeking constitutional and political safeguards for Ladakh following its reorganisation as a Union Territory in 2019. Several rounds of talks with the Centre have already led to decisions on issues such as domicile and reservation policies, though the core political demands remain unresolved.
