SRINAGAR: Ongoing dialogue between the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ladakh leaders is set to reach a decisive stage, as key demands for statehood and 6th Schedule status take centre stage in the upcoming round of talks. Following the introduction of a domicile policy for the Union Territory (UT), stakeholders in Ladakh see this phase of negotiations as critical to securing greater autonomy and constitutional safeguards.“The next round of talks with the HPC of MHA, chaired by the Union MoS Home, would mainly focus on our demand for statehood with legislature and 6th Schedule status for Ladakh,” said Chering Dorje, executive member of the Leh Apex Body (LAB), to this newspaper.The last round of talks on 27 May was termed successful, as it led to the introduction of the domicile policy for the Ladakh UT, with a 15-year eligibility timeline starting from 2019. Following the 27 May discussions, the President also promulgated the Union Territory of Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Regulation, 2025, to reserve 85 per cent of jobs in the region.“It will be for the first time that our demand for statehood and 6th Schedule status for Ladakh will be directly discussed with the Centre,” Dorje added. “These are our main demands and we won’t budge from it.”He, however, noted that unfortunately, they had not yet received an invitation for the next round of talks.“We were hopeful of a meeting this month, but so far we have not received any invitation,” Dorje said.
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