Ladakh leaders, Central panel likely to hold meeting in early February

The High-Powered Committee (HPC) meeting between the Union Home Ministry and Ladakh leaders is likely to be held in the first week of February, with discussions currently underway to finalise the date, according to a senior Ladakh leader.

Last week, a communication from the Union Home Ministry to Ladakh’s Chief Secretary stated that “the next meeting of the High-Powered Committee (HPC) will be convened in the latter part of January 2026.” The letter also asked the UT administration to consult HPC members for their convenient dates and convey them to the Ministry.

However, Cherring Dorjay Lakruk, co-chairman of the Leh Apex Body (LAB), one of the two main Ladakh-based groups engaged in talks with the Centre, said on Monday that the meeting is now likely to take place in early February.

“Discussions are underway to finalise the dates. Talks could take place on February 4, but nothing has been confirmed yet,” Lakruk told The Tribune.

The upcoming meeting will be the first high-level engagement between Ladakh leaders and the Centre since last year’s violence in Leh, in which four people were killed and around 90 others were injured during protests demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh.

The HPC, chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, was constituted three years ago to hold talks with Ladakh-based groups led by the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA). The last meeting of the committee was held in May, while another meeting scheduled for October last year was deferred.

Following the September clashes in Leh, the Centre ordered a judicial inquiry in October.

Last year, Ladakh leaders submitted a draft proposal outlining their key demands, including statehood and Sixth Schedule status for the Union Territory, after a series of subcommittee-level discussions with Home Ministry officials.

Lakruk said that ahead of the proposed meeting in Delhi, the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance would hold internal consultations to firm up their position.

The forthcoming talks also come amid the emergence of a new group, the “Voice of Buddhist Ladakh,” led by Skarma Namtak. The group has already met Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta and claims it was formed due to concerns that the interests of the Buddhist community were being overlooked.