BJP demands reinstatement of L-G’s financial powers in Ladakh

Days after the Union government reduced the financial powers of the Ladakh Lieutenant Governor and other officials, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) delegation on Monday met party’s national general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh requesting his intervention to restore and re-delegate the financial powers of the Lt Governor.

A statement by BJP’s Ladakh unit said a delegation led by party’s UT president Tashi Gyaltsan Khachu along with former chief of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh, Tashi Gyalson, and party’s UT vice president Tonyot Tashi met Santhosh at the Central Office in Delhi today.

As per the order issued on November 24 by the Ladakh’s finance department, the approval and sanction for projects up to Rs 100 crore will now lie with the Union home ministry.

The BJP said the delegation requested return of the previous arrangement “to ensure smooth administrative functioning and timely delivery of public welfare initiatives.”

The delegation raised concerns regarding Ladakh University’s “non-compliance with reservation and domicile rules, seeking necessary action to uphold the rightful opportunities of Ladakhi students and youth.”

The statement said the leadership also urged the restoration of the CAPEX budget for Ladakh and its “reinstatement during the revised estimates (RE), enabling resolution of pending liabilities and continued development momentum across the region.”