Kargil: In the first-ever polls held since Ladakh was bifurcated from Kashmir in 2019, the National Conference (NC)-Congress bagged 22 seats in Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil (LAHDC-K) elections while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) managed to win only two seats.
The Congress party clinched 10 seats, while the National Conference secured 12, the BJP managed to win two seats, and one each seat was claimed by two independent candidate.
Traditionally, elections in the Ladakh region focused on local civic issues. However, this year, the central theme was the "reorganization of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019."
The initial jubilation in the Buddhist-majority Leh district, which celebrated Ladakh’s bifurcation from Kashmir into a “Union Territory” without a legislature, contrasted sharply with the widespread protests and shutdowns in the Muslim-majority Kargil district.
However, the dynamics shifted when the Buddhist majority joined forces with the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), advocating for the implementation of six schedules.
These include the grant of statehood to Ladakh, constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the constitution and separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil districts. The Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution offers protections and an amount of autonomy to tribal areas. Another key demand was an immediate rollout of a recruitment process and a Public Service Commission for Ladakh, given the soaring unemployment in the region.
These are two influential collectives of Ladakh Politics– Ladakh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance – comprising social, religious, political and student organizations from both regions, agreed on a set of four demands to put forward before the Govt of India.
During polling in Kargil, several voters told reporters that the separation from Kashmir was an emotive issue and that 5 August wasn’t acceptable to them.
“People were desperate to send a message to the Bharatiya Janata Party that they have wronged us,” they said.
Reacting to the election results, the Vice President of the JKNC stated that this outcome sends a powerful message to all forces and parties involved in the undemocratic and unconstitutional division of Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh without the consent of the people.
He hailed the victory as a decisive endorsement of the National Conference-Congress alliance by the people of Zanskar, Kargil, and Drass.
