A plea has been lodged before the Delhi High Court seeking permission to allow climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and his associates from Ladakh to hold peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar or any other suitable location from October 08 to October 23 for raising environmental awareness and demanding Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh.
The petition has been lodged by Apex Body Leh, an organization working towards protecting Ladakh’s cultural environmental interests. The organisation carried out the march with approximately 200 demonstrators, including Wangchuk, and began the march from Leh to New Delhi.
The plea was mentioned before a division bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela which refused urgent listing for today. However, the bench said that the matter will be listed tomorrow. Disappointed by a letter issued by the Commissioner of Delhi Police on October 05 rejecting the request to hold a peaceful demonstration at Jantar Mantar, the organization approached the Delhi High Court.
The plea said that the refusal infringes upon the petitioner organization’s fundamental rights to speech and peaceful assembly under Articles 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution of India.
It stated that the Delhi Police failed to provide any valid or reasonable grounds for rejecting the request for holding peaceful protest.
It added that the proposed demonstration is a peaceful expression of dissent aimed at highlighting significant social issues by the petitioner organisation. It said that the proposed hunger strike is aimed at raising awareness about critical societal issues and communicating grievances to the authorities. It remarked that by denying permission, the police is effectively suppressing this fundamental right and limiting the petitioner’s ability to engage in public discourse, undermining the principle of open expression.
Earlier, the bench had disposed of three petitions against the alleged detention of Sonam Wangchuk and others. Subsequently, the Delhi Police informed the Court that Sonam Wangchuk and his associates were released and set free.
Climate Activist Sonam Wangchuk was leading the march called Delhi Chalo Padyatra, which began in Leh last month. He was detained at Singhu Border on the night of September 30, along with other people from Ladakh.
The march was held by the Leh Apex Body. The organisation, along with the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), has been leading an agitation to demand statehood for Ladakh.