NEW DELHI: The Centre is likely to soon call representatives of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) for a fresh round of talks on the demands of residents of the Union territory, sources said on Tuesday.
Officials in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) have been making an “exhaustive assessment” of the 29-page joint document submitted by the LAB and KDA, outlining the legal and constitutional framework for their demands including full-fledged statehood and the region’s inclusion under the Sixth Schedule, they said.
The next meeting with the High Powered Committee (HPC), headed by Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, is expected to be held in the national capital.
A source said, "Officials in the MHA have been working on the contours of the next meeting. As of now, the meeting is tentatively scheduled for January 10 in New Delhi, where representatives of the LAB, KDA, the Ladakh Lok Sabha member and other key stakeholders are also expected to be invited.”
Explaining the delay in inviting Ladakh leaders for the next round of talks, sources said this was because of the “detailed and lengthy nature” of the joint document, which also sought specific legal provisions in support of statehood and Sixth Schedule status. “The MHA is keen to leave no room for ambiguity in its assessment of the joint document, so as to avoid any further delay in resolution of issues or confrontation with the Ladakh groups before convening the next round of talks,” the source said.
The LAB and KDA have recommended replacing the existing Autonomous Hill Development Councils (AHDCs) of Leh and Kargil with more empowered Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) on the lines of those provided under the Sixth Schedule. These ADCs, the groups have proposed, should be extended to all existing districts as well as the five new districts proposed for Ladakh.
The MHA had sought a comprehensive document from the LAB and KDA detailing their demands before convening the next meeting.
Talks between the Centre and the Ladakh groups had broken down following violence on September 24, after which both the LAB and KDA stayed away from the dialogue scheduled for October 6. They agreed to participate in the October 22 meeting only after the MHA ordered a judicial inquiry into the violence. The inquiry is being conducted by a retired Supreme Court judge.