NEW DELHI, 17 Mar: In his first public remarks after being released from jail, activist Sonam Wangchuk on Tuesday said he wants to see the development in a “positive light” and expressed hope that it would lead to a “meaningful dialogue” on the demands of agitating bodies in Ladakh.
Addressing a press conference here along with his wife and HIAL co-founder Gitanjali J Angmo, Wangchuk said the protests in Ladakh have been aimed solely at initiating a constructive dialogue process.
He said also that talks are a “give and take process” and both sides will have to make “certain accommodations.”
“We were sure of a victory in the court, but a win was not enough. I wanted a win-win,” he said.
He also expressed hope that the Supreme Court would rule on the habeas corpus petition filed by his wife to set a precedent.
Wangchuk described the government’s move to release him as an “extending of hand to build trust and to facilitate meaningful, constructive dialogue.”
He expressed hope that it would not just be a dialogue, but “meaningful, effective talks, which lead us to something good.”
Asked about his next step, Wangchuk said he would travel to Ladakh and consult with leaders of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), which have been spearheading the agitation over the past five years for statehood and extension of the Sixth Schedule to Ladakh.
On whether he would return to agitation, he said, “I have always said I don’t want to sit on hunger strike; I am forced to do it. Now that the government is extending its hand, we hope a good example is set.”
He said also that when dialogues are held with the Centre, both sides should be flexible and accommodating.
“Overall, the two main issues are safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, statehood, or the restoration of democracy… So as I said, it involves give and take.
Wangchuk, 59, was detained on 26 September last year under the stringent NSA, two days after violent protests during the agitation left four people dead.
He was released from Jodhpur central jail on Saturday after the union government revoked his detention with immediate effect.
The LAB and KDA have remained engaged in talks with the ministry of home affairs over their key demands of statehood and Sixth Schedule inclusion, issues that have simmered since the region was carved out of Jammu and Kashmir as a union territory in 2019.
The outfits held rallies and shutdown on Monday to demand the next round of talks as promised during the high-powered committee meeting.
The last meeting of the high-powered committee chaired by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai took place on 4 February, when both bodies demanded the release of Wangchuk and 70 other detainees. (PTI)
