Five people were killed and dozens more injured on Wednesday in the Himalayan region of Ladakh as police clashed with hundreds of protesters demanding greater autonomy, authorities said.
In Leh, Ladakh’s main city, demonstrators set fire to a police vehicle and the offices of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Police responded with tear gas and batons to disperse the crowds.
“Five deaths were reported following the protests,” a police officer in Leh, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP. “The number of injured runs into the dozens.” Another officer, Regzin Sangdup, added that several people, including some policemen, sustained injuries.
In response to the unrest, authorities later imposed restrictions on gatherings, prohibiting assemblies of more than four people.
Ladakh, a sparsely populated, high-altitude desert region home to around 300,000 people, borders both China and Pakistan. About half of the population is Muslim, with roughly 40 percent identifying as Buddhist. The territory is classified as a Union Territory, meaning it is governed directly by New Delhi while still electing lawmakers to the national parliament.
The demonstrations were organized in support of prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been on a hunger strike for two weeks. Wangchuk is demanding either full statehood for Ladakh or constitutional protections for its tribal communities, land, and fragile environment.
“Social unrest arises when you keep young people unemployed and deprive them of their democratic rights,” Wangchuk said in a statement shared on social media. He urged protesters to avoid violence “whatever happens.”
India maintains a significant military presence in Ladakh, which includes disputed border areas with China. Troops from the two countries clashed in the region in 2020, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers.
In 2019, Modi’s government separated Ladakh from Indian-administered Kashmir, placing it under direct rule. New Delhi has yet to fulfill its promise to bring Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of India’s constitution, which would allow local communities to enact their own laws and policies.
“There is no platform for democracy here today,” Wangchuk said. “Even the Sixth Schedule, which was promised and declared, has not been implemented.”