Wangchuk to Lead Symbolic 20-km March in Leh on September 23
Sonam Wangchuk will lead a symbolic 20-km march in Leh on September 23, followed by a martyrs' day event on September 24.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk has said he will lead a symbolic 20-km march in Leh on September 23, 2026, pressing for the protection of Ladakh's culture, environment and democracy. The walk was earlier planned as a five-day padyatra from September 19 to 23, but has been scaled back because of cold weather and the prevailing political climate, he said in a video message.
A martyrs' day event will follow on September 24, the first anniversary of the violence in Leh in which four protesters were killed.
One year since the Leh firing
On September 24, 2025, security personnel allegedly opened fire on protesters in Leh, killing four civilians and injuring around 90. The demonstrators, largely young people, were agitating for Statehood and the Sixth Schedule. They set the BJP office on fire and damaged the premises of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC).
Wangchuk, who was on a hunger strike at the time, was detained under the National Security Act and held in Jodhpur jail for 170 days. Ladakh is observing a 'Martyrs Month' to remember those killed during last year's protests.
Statehood demand
After the revocation of Article 370, Ladakh was carved out of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019 as a Union Territory without a Legislative Assembly. The Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance have since demanded Statehood and tribal status for Ladakh, along with a greater say for local residents in decisions on land and infrastructure projects.
Civil society groups, including the two bodies, held talks with the Centre on September 9, 2026. Senior Leh leaders Tsering Samphel and Rigzin Spalbar had earlier voiced opposition to proposed protest marches, saying they were against any padyatra or protest in Leh while formal talks were under way as a follow-up to an agreement signed consensually by them.
Both the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance, however, support the first death anniversary remembrance meetings. Wangchuk has also backed the agitational route to pressurise New Delhi into honouring commitments made during the May 22 and September 9 talks between the Union government and Ladakh's representatives.