Ladakh Observes Shutdown Amid Protests Against Government Policies

Ladakh observed a complete shutdown on Tuesday in response to a call by the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance — powerful socio-political bodies representing the two regions that make up the Union Territory. On Saturday, representatives of both organisations had jointly announced the shutdown following a disagreement with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs over a document that recorded the “minutes of the meeting” when representatives of the groups met ministry officials on May 22. On Tuesday, both Leh and Kargil towns, along with other areas of the Union Territory, shut down businesses to mark the protest . While the Leh administration had denied permission to the Ladakh Buddhist Association to host a “peaceful demonstration” in Leh, the Apex Body co-chairman Cherring Dorjay Lakrook had told The Indian Express that the protest would go ahead. Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) co-chairman Sajjad Kargili highlighted that the protest also marks Ladakh’s resentment against policies being announced by Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, such as the recently announced liquor policy that allows for the retail sale of hard liquor and expanding liquor outlets in the region. Ladakh Bandh and Protest A successful bandh in Leh and Kargil and protest in Leh city is being observed today against the recently introduced excise policy facilitating the opening of liquor outlets, the ongoing land digitisation process being carried out without adequate… pic.twitter.com/yRtERul5Jb — 𝐒𝐚𝐣𝐣𝐚𝐝 𝐊𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐥𝐢 | سجاد کرگلی (@SajjadKargili_) June 23, 2026 “Through this protest, the people of Ladakh have also reinforced the message that we do not endorse the policies being forced upon us,” Kargili said. He also stated that they had presented their case through a draft of demands and now they have received a proposal from the government on which “there is understanding that we will discuss this further”, he said. The proposal includes protections under Article 371 of the Constitution and expanding Ladakh’s democratic setup to include a legislature. Post the meeting held at New Delhi , a document with the minutes of the meeting was circulated for signatures, and as per Lakrook, “it did not reflect the discussion between members of the subcommittee and the MHA.” Members of both bodies had refused to sign the document. On June 20, Lakrook had said that these tactics “betray the intention of the (Union) government,” and that this feels like a time-buying exercise on the part of the Centre. Both ABL and KDA have underscored that the MHA should remain consistent on the decisions taken during their meeting.