Sonam Wangchuk: Recipient of the Magsaysay Award, Sonam, appears dejected after finishing a five-day fast on Monday in support of protecting the “glaciers, mountains, land, and people” of Ladakh by demanding its inclusion in the Constitution’s Sixth Schedule. The engineer and entrepreneur turned climate activist, a former ardent supporter of PM Modi, said today that the Ladakh government is “trying hard to sow seeds of militancy in the peaceful region” by seeking to repeal Art 370 in the then-Jammu and Kashmir state in 2019.
Sonam Wangchuk gives a big statement
Following the completion of his “climate fast” at his organisation, the Himalayan Institute of Alternative Ladakh, Wangchuk claims he now believes that Ladakhis were better off living as a member of the Jammu and Kashmir state prior to 2019.
Earlier, in a statement, he said “I have been asked to sign a bond… Three innocent teachers of my school have been taken to police station, so that they force me to sign the bond. These tactics are being employed by the L-G sahib. On this occasion, I would say that L-G sahib, you are working hard to sow the seeds of militancy in peaceful Ladakh. The way youth have been kept unemployed and are being oppressed, this can happen. But remember, we will not let this happen.”
He continued further by saying, ““I didn’t think I would ever say this, but I am saying that we were better-off with Jammu and Kashmir than today’s UT [Union Territory]. I would also tell that our tomorrow’s UT would be better and golden.”
Watch video from last day of his fast
Wangchuk, the founder of the Students Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SEMCOL), started his fast on January 26 i.e. Republic Day. He had planned to hold the fast in the open at Khardung La, where nighttime lows reach -40°C, but he was denied permission and had to do it within his institute instead, where lows dip to -20°C. He planned an exhibition about solar energy for Monday, the last day of the fast.
The Leh administration has placed Leh engineer and inventor Wangchuk under house arrest and is requesting that he pay a bond in order to be released. Wangchuk is well-known for developing the ice stupas technique to build artificial glaciers in Ladakh. The bond’s conditions stipulate that he won’t make any remarks, public comments, speeches, or hold any events or activities “connected to Leh district at present times” or take part in them.
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