Ladakh at Crossroads

For the majority of the Buddhist population of Ladakh, the coming year will be a crucial one. Talks are entering a critical phase on the granting of Hill Council Status to Ladakh, along the lines of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council and Ladakh would remain a part of Jammu & Kashmir State, but have its own General and Executive Council. These would Control district planning and development budgets, with state government approval, but would have no say over law and order or the judiciary. The Ladakhi side perceives the Council as a 'state within a state,' whereas the state continues to regard it as a 'planning and development board.'

Ladakh's bargaining position at these talks has been considerably strengthened by the settling of differences between the Ladakhi Muslim and Buddhist populations. Relations between the Buddhists and the indigenous Ladakhi Muslims, who used to run much of the trade between Leh, Kashmir and Central Asia, had historically been a model of inter-communal tolerance. But when serious street disturbances erupted in Leh in the late 1980s, Buddhist resentment against the Muslim-controlled government in Srinagar spilled over into anger at their fellow Ladakhi Muslims. The Buddhists also feared that their political majority within the district would be eroded because of a higher population growth rate among Muslims. The Ladakh Buddhist Association instituted a ban on all inter-communal associations, a decision which was much resented by both moderates on both sides. The ban was only lifted when the talks concerning Hill Council status began to bear fruit.