Centre backtracking on draft agreed on May 22: Sonam Wangchuk
Ladakh civil society members, including activist Sonam Wangchuk, have accused the Indian government of backtracking on promises regarding local governance. The group claims the latest draft from the Ministry of Home Affairs weakens the power of elected representatives.
Why it matters
The dispute highlights ongoing tensions between regional autonomy movements and central government control in the Union Territory of Ladakh.
Members of the Ladakh civil society on Monday (June 1, 2026) said the Centre was backtracking from its promise made during the meeting on May 22 on “granting supreme powers to elected representatives over bureaucracy in the Union Territory”. They further alleged that the draft shared by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) recently was “watered down”. “We appeal to the Centre to not allow the atmosphere of positivity to grow negative. There is scope for suspicion that the Centre was backtracking from its agreed position on granting supreme powers to elected representatives over bureaucracy in the region,” said climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who attended the sub-committee meeting in New Delhi on May 22.
The article centers the perspective of the activists and their grievances against the central government's actions.
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