Days after Ladakh held a shutdown over claims that official records omitted key points from talks with the Centre, the Ministry of Home Affairs has updated the final minutes of the May 22 meeting. The changes address worries about the government’s pledges and were endorsed at a follow-up session in Leh on Friday.
The revised record adds a clause giving the proposed elected executive body authority over civil servants, including control of their Annual Performance Appraisal Reports, for subjects under its jurisdiction. This meets a main demand from the Apex Body, Leh and the Kargil Democratic Alliance.
The addition differs from the earlier draft that Ladakh leaders declined to sign, saying it left out important agreements. That refusal led to a full shutdown across the region on June 23, with the groups accusing the Centre of reversing commitments.
The final minutes show Ladakh representatives repeated calls for statehood, Sixth Schedule status, a separate administrative and police service, and withdrawal of protest-related cases. Both sides noted statehood remains a long-term goal but agreed to first create a tailored self-governance model via a Union Territory-level elected body with executive, financial and legislative powers.
The document states that bureaucratic accountability was discussed in detail and that the elected body will exercise supervision over relevant officials, with further details to be set later. It also records plans for a custom constitutional safeguards model under Article 371, to be refined in upcoming meetings.
The minutes were approved at the Leh meeting attended by central and local officials along with representatives from both Leh and Kargil groups. The update is expected to restart dialogue after weeks of uncertainty. The May 22 talks had been the clearest progress on Ladakh’s demands since the region became a Union Territory without a legislature in 2019. Concerns had grown over missing constitutional protections for land, jobs and identity, and over heavy bureaucratic control. The two alliances have led protests seeking greater autonomy since then.
