It will be joint paper of twin bodies
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Nov 15: The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) will be sending comprehensive document carrying their demands to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) tomorrow after which the High Powered Committee (HPC) meeting is likely to be convened by the MHA in New Delhi.
Follow the Daily Excelsior channel on WhatsApp
“After several rounds of talks within the LAB and then with KDA, the document has been drafted. The document is joint from twin bodies of Leh and Kargil. It will be emailed to the Home Ministry tomorrow and then released to the media,” LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjay Lakruk told the Excelsior.
Declining to reveal contents of the exhaustive document prepared after over fortnight long exercise by the LAB and KDA with the help of legal advisors and other stakeholders, Lakruk, however, said it will be released tomorrow after we email it to the MHA. However, he said, all major demands of the Union Territory of Ladakh have been incorporated in the document.
Statehood, Sixth Schedule status to Ladakh and release of all persons detained after September 24 violence in Leh are among the issues listed by the LAB and KDA in their joint document to be emailed to the Union Home Ministry besides other issues.
Last meeting of the Sub Committee attended by top MHA and UT Ladakh administration officials, representatives of LAB and KDA, Ladakh MP and CECs-cum-Chairpersons of Leh and Kargil Hill Councils was held on October 22 in New Delhi. The dialogue had resumed after nearly five months as the previous meeting was held on May 27.
The MHA had sought detailed document from the LAB and KDA enlisting their demands before next meeting.
Sources said that next meeting will be called by the MHA after receiving and studying the document to be submitted by the LAB and KDA tomorrow. It, however, will be the High Powered Committee (HPC) meeting which is headed by Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai.
The HPC will have six representatives each from LAB and KDA as against three each in the Sub Committee besides the Ladakh MP, Kargil Hill Council Chairperson and senior officials of the MHA and Ladakh UT administration. The Leh Hill Council has completed its term and it will be seen whether its former Chairperson-cum-CEC is invited for the meeting or not.
Talks between the Centre, LAB and KDA had broken down after September 24 violence which took place during strike called by youth wing of the LAB seeking preponement of talks with the MHA which were scheduled for October 6. Four civilians were killed and many others were injured in the violence.
Both the Ladakh organizations (LAB and KDA) stayed away from the dialogue slated for October 6. However, they agreed for October 22 meeting only after the MHA ordered judicial inquiry into the violence headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court.
The post LAB, KDA to submit document listing demands to MHA today appeared first on Daily Excelsior.