15 March,2026 08:46 AM IST | Leh | Agencies
Sonam Wangchuk has been in jail for six months. FILE PIC
Leaders in Ladakh on Saturday welcomed the release of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk from Jodhpur jail but called for the immediate release of other detainees linked to the ongoing agitation for statehood and constitutional safeguards.
The Union government revoked Wangchuk's detention under the National Security Act with immediate effect, nearly six months after he was arrested following protests in Leh demanding statehood for Ladakh and protection under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Ladakh MP Mohamad Hanifa welcomed the move but said the government must go further. "We welcome the release of Sonam Wangchuk. But others also need to be released, and the government should also take back the cases filed against people who participated in the protests," Hanifa said.
The Leh Apex Body (LAB), one of the groups spearheading the agitation along with the Kargil Democratic Alliance, described the development as a "big victory" for the people of Ladakh.
LAB co-chairman Chering Dorjey said the government had "saved its face" by revoking the detention ahead of a hearing in the Supreme Court of India later this month. "This is not just about Wangchuk but about the whole of Ladakh. We maintained from the start that the allegations against him were baseless," Dorjey said.
Kargil-based politician Sajjad Kargili said, "The revocation of NSA against Sonam Wangchuk is a welcome move. However, our struggle for legitimate rights continues."
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