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A massive protest by the people of Ladakh demanding statehood and the inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule turned into clashes with police in Leh on Wednesday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) office in Leh was also targeted as protesters clashed with the police. Activist Sonam Wangchuk who has been on a hunger strike, issued a video and expressed sorrow for the violence in Leh, and called for peace to prevail. He said, "I am sad to inform you that there was vandalism in Leh during a protest. Many offices and police vehicles were vandalised and burned. A bandh was announced in Leh, but the youth came in large numbers...This was youth''s anger, a Gen-Z revolution..." Sharing the video on X, Wangchuk wrote, "Very sad by the events in Leh. My message of the peaceful path failed today. I appeal to the youth to please stop this nonsense. This only damages our cause." National Conference MLA Tanvir Sadiq said, "It is very unfortunate that everything has been mishandled. The way J&K is being mishandled, Ladakh is also being mishandled in a similar way. While this is true, we condemn violence and hope that the central government sitting in Delhi will sit down and talk with the people of Ladakh..." The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution contains Article 244(2) and 275(1), which reads, "Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram." Meanwhile, there has been a demand for statehood for Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370. Earlier today, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the delay in the restoration of statehood to JK, saying that it was "unfair" to the people. Speaking to reporters, Abdullah accused the BJP of delaying and opposing the restoration of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir since it lost the elections. "People participated in the election process. It is the BJP''s bad luck that they couldn''t win. However, people here can''t be punished for that. It seems like statehood is not being provided to the people since the BJP didn''t form the government. It is unfair to people. It was not stated that statehood will be restored only when the results favour the BJP. The opposition to statehood is coming from the BJP," CM Abdullah said. (ANI)
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