Ladakh statehood activist Sonam Wangchuk and the central government are on a warpath following the violent protests in the mountainous region that left four killed and over 50 injured.
In an interview to NDTV's Padmaja Joshi on Thursday, Mr Wangchuk - who the Centre has held responsible for inciting a mob with provocative statements - said he made appeals for calm in both Ladakhi and Hindi when gunshots were heard, and refuted the Centre's allegations that he left the protest venue without controlling the mob.
"I don't know why they're playing this blame game after such a sad incident. If you look, I made an appeal in Ladakhi and Hindi while guns were blasting right near my ears. You can hear the blasts in that speech where I say this is not the way our path has been. Our path has been peaceful and this violence is not supporting us. It's doing more damage to the cause," he said.
"And right as I was speaking, there were explosions... So I made those appeals and then finally, I had to leave. Soon after I left, the security personnel thrashed people ruthlessly," he alleged.
Earlier today, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) cancelled the registration of Mr Wangchuk's non-profit 'Students Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh' (SECMOL) to receive funds from abroad for allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act or FCRA, 2010.
On whether his organisation received money in violation of FCRA guidelines or he got money into his personal accounts - the MHA has alleged several violations - Mr Wangchuk denied any such transactions.
"If at all, personal money has been put into our institute. I am one person who contributes one crore every year so that others contribute nine crores in matching contributions... You are saying foreign funds are received. Yes, they investigated it and we showed them we are not accepting foreign contributions," Mr Wangchuk said.
"But our knowledge, especially in passive solar heating and in artificial glaciers, is valued all over the world. The United Nations has paid fees for our services so that these technologies can be given to Afghanistan. Swiss University has taken our services. An Italian organisation has taken our services. These are business transactions, service agreements with full tax paid. They mistook it as foreign contributions. I consider it a mistake on their [Centre's] part and therefore I don't mind it. But that's what was thought of as a foreign contribution. It is not," he told NDTV.
The Centre has said the demands on which Mr Wangchuk was on hunger strike are integral part of the discussion in the high-powered committee. It said that despite many leaders urging him to call off the hunger strike, the activist continued his protest and misled people through provocative mention of Arab Spring-style protest and references to Gen Z protests in Nepal.
⭐ It is clear that the mob was incited by Shri Sonam Wangchuk through his provocative statements. Incidentally, amidst these violent developments, he broke his fast and left for his village in an ambulance without making serious efforts to control the situation.
— PIB - Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) September 24, 2025
⭐ The...
On the possibility of being arrested, the activist who won the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2018 said he is "happy to be arrested anytime if it is for this cause."
He also added what seemed like a warning: "I'm preparing for that [arrest]. I am looking forward to it. I don't want to be in any confusion... But I want to tell you Sonam Wangchuk in jail will be equally, if not more problematic as Sonam Wangchuk outside participating in dialogues and discussions... because it will awaken people more about how this country is being run."
He narrated a list of work he and others have done to justify his activism.
"People who have given their lives for the education of the young, defence of the country, who worked with the Indian defence forces to build solar-heated shelters, who launched movements against China, boycott Chinese products... If such a person is jailed and then corrupt people are freely roaming around, that will be a great scene for the nation to see and understand what's happening in our country," Mr Wangchuk told NDTV.
from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/7nF5zxQ
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