Sonam Wangchuk Scales Down Leh Padyatra to 20-km Symbolic March; Martyrs' Day Event on Sept 24

Activist Sonam Wangchuk has announced that he will lead a 20-km symbolic march in Leh on September 23, 2026, to press for the protection of Ladakh's culture, environment and democratic rights. He shared the revised plan in a video message posted on X on September 17.

The march was originally scheduled to run from September 19 to 23. Mr. Wangchuk said it had been shortened to a single-day symbolic walk because of cold nights and the prevailing political atmosphere. A "Martyrs' Day" event will be held the next day, September 24.

That date marks one year since the violence in Leh on September 24, 2025, in which four civilians were killed. On that day, security personnel allegedly opened fire on protesters who were demanding Statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh; around 90 people were injured. During the protests, which were largely led by young people, the BJP office was set on fire and the premises of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) were vandalised.

Mr. 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. Civil society groups in the region have since been observing a "Martyrs' Month" to remember those killed, with public meetings and prayers held across Leh and Kargil.

Mr. Wangchuk, an engineer and educationist known for building artificial glaciers — "ice stupas" — in Ladakh and for his work with the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), has been a prominent voice in the region's campaign for greater autonomy. In his video message, he apologised for the change in plans and invited supporters to join the march.

Ladakh's political status has been at the centre of the dispute since 2019, when the provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution were revoked and the region, earlier part of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir, became a Union Territory without a Legislative Assembly. Since then, the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) have demanded Statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh, along with a larger role for local residents in decisions on land and infrastructure projects.

The demand for the Sixth Schedule, which governs the administration of tribal areas in several north-eastern States, is aimed at giving Ladakhi communities greater control over land, forests and local governance. The Union government has not announced a decision on the pending demands.

Representatives of the two groups held talks with the Union government on September 9, 2026, a follow-up to an agreement reached on May 22. Senior leaders from Leh, Tsering Samphel and Rigzin Spalbar, had earlier voiced concern over the proposed protest marches. "We are strongly against holding any padyatra [walk] or protest in Leh while formal talks are proceeding as a follow-up to the agreement consensually signed by ourselves," they said.

Both the Leh Apex Body and the KDA, however, support the first death anniversary remembrance meetings. Mr. Wangchuk has also backed the agitational route to press New Delhi to fulfil the promises made during the May 22 and September 9 talks.