Overview
- The Ministry of Home Affairs shared a 15‑page framework in Leh on October 15 that proposes a two‑stage route: a constitutional amendment followed by an Article 240 regulation to create a directly elected Union Territory‑level body with safeguards for land, resources and culture.
- Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance issued a joint rejection saying the draft departs from earlier assurances, falls short of a legislature and appears closer to a weak North‑East Frontier Agency or territorial council model that would leave major powers with the Lieutenant Governor.
- Ladakh leaders said the draft backtracks on the May 22 understanding that a customised sui generis model under Article 371 would provide meaningful legislative, executive and financial powers and civilian control over local bureaucracy.
- Both sides agreed to exchange written responses, with LAB and KDA preparing a point‑by‑point counter by October 18 and a fresh round of talks scheduled in New Delhi on October 22 to try to narrow the gap.
- The deadlock heightens the risk of renewed protests given long‑running local demands since 2019 for stronger constitutional safeguards, statehood or Sixth Schedule protections and recent tensions that included deadly unrest in September 2025.