Ladakh announces Panchayat elections; asks SEC to revise rolls, issue notification

Polls to 7 Councils will be held together but will take time

UT -level body’s structure yet to be finalized

JAMMU, Aug 20: The Ladakh administration today announced conduct of Panchayat elections in the Union Territory. In this connection, it has asked the State Election Commission (SEC) to revise electoral rolls and issue a notification.

The administration said that elections to seven Autonomous Hill Development Councils can take time due to completion of formalities but they will be held together to all the Councils whenever conducted.

An announcement to this effect was made by Chief Secretary Ladakh Ashish Kundra while addressing a press conference in Leh this morning.

“A decision to hold Panchayat elections in Ladakh is under consideration. The process will be set into motion asking the SEC to initiate electoral rolls revision followed by a notification,” he said.

Panchayat and Municipal elections were last held in Ladakh in 2018 when it was part of Jammu and Kashmir. Both the bodies completed their term by the end of 20023 and start of 2024. Ladakh was made a Union Territory after being separated from Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019.

Ladakh has 193 Panchayats including 95 in Leh and 98 in Kargil.

“The Union Territory-level body needs Constitutional amendment and can take time. Also elections to all seven District Autonomous Hill Development Councils have to be held together now and will require time,” Kundra said, adding that to overcome political vacuum, the administration has decided to conduct Panchayat elections in Ladakh.

There is lone Lok Sabha member from Ladakh and Kargil Hill Development Council as the elected person and bodies presently. The proposed UT-level body will be an elected one but its structure, mode of elections and all other issues are yet to be finalized. Number of Hill Councils has been raised from two to seven with increase in number of districts but only one elected Council (Kargil) is in place and elections to six Councils are yet to be held. The Municipal bodies are also without elections.

Asserting that the UT-level body can’t be set up overnight, the Chief Secretary Ladakh said its model, powers, mode of elections and other issues have to be decided by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) which needs time. As this will be a new model, the Constitutional process and aspirations of the people have to be taken into account, he added.

Referring to yesterday’s meeting attended by him, the MHA officials, representatives of Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) besides Thupstan Chhewang, former MP and Tashi Gyalson, ex Chairman Leh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kundra said the participants raised the issues that UT-level body has to be sui-generis and implementation of parts of Article 371, they also submitted certain non-negotiable points which have been submitted to the MHA.

“The further roadmap (on UT-level elected body and other issues) will be taken in the next Sub Committee meeting likely to be held in New Delhi in first half of September though the efforts are on to hold the meeting in first week of September,” he said.

On the demand for withdrawal of cases and grant of compensation to those killed and injured in last year’s September 24 violence in Leh, the Chief Secretary said 87 persons were booked while nine were charge sheeted whose cases are pending in the courts.

“We have discussed the issue with the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh. There are 25 cases where there is no major evidence. Their FIRs will be withdrawn and closure report will be filed in the court,” he said, adding for rest of the cases the police chief will be urged to examine and take a decision.

It may be mentioned here that the MHA team from New Delhi joined by the Chief Secretary Ladakh held a meeting with representatives of LAB and KDA and other senior leaders of the Union Territory in Leh yesterday in which the issues pertaining to proposed UT-level elected body with financial, executive and legislative powers were raised but there was no major headway.

The LAB and KDA submitted non-negotiable points in the meeting.