Ladakh statehood activist arrested days after violent crackdown by Modi

"A renowned environmentalist at the forefront of a protest movement in the Indian region of Ladakh has been arrested amid a wider crackdown on dissent under the prime minister, Narendra Modi. Sonam Wangchuk, an activist, engineer and inventor, has been leading a lengthy agitation against the Modi government, calling for statehood and greater protections to be granted to his home region of Ladakh. He was arrested on Friday afternoon, on his way to address a press conference."

"His detention came after demonstrations in the regional capital of Leh turned violent on Wednesday. The local offices of Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were among the buildings set on fire. The police responded with live ammunition, killing at least four protesters who were demanding autonomy and statehood for Ladakh. Ladakh which sits high up in the Himalayan mountains along the fractious borders with China and Pakistan has been under the control of the central government since 2019."

"The central home ministry accused Wangchuk, who had been staging a 15-day hunger strike, of inciting the mob violence through provocative statements, which referred to the Arab Spring and recent anti-corruption protests in Nepal. Wangchuk had rejected the allegation, saying he did not support violence. He claimed that the central government was building a case against him to throw me in jail for two years. I am ready for that, he said the night before his arrest."

Sonam Wangchuk, an environmentalist and activist from Ladakh, was arrested while traveling to a press conference amid a wider crackdown. Demonstrations in Leh turned violent, with BJP local offices set on fire and police firing live ammunition that killed at least four protesters demanding autonomy and statehood. Ladakh has been under central control since 2019 after Jammu and Kashmir was dissolved. The central home ministry accused Wangchuk, who had been on a 15-day hunger strike, of inciting violence by referencing the Arab Spring and Nepal protests. Wangchuk denied supporting violence and rose to prominence through education and environmental work, including founding an award-winning school and inventing the ice stupa.

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