Home Ministry order on Ladakh Committee is vague, say members

A few members from the high-powered committee, constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) have held the notification by Ladakh committee as vague and does not address their demand for inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

Background of the issue:

• Separation from J&K: On August 5, 2019, the former State of Jammu & Kashmir was bifurcated into two Union Territories — Jammu & Kashmir, and Ladakh, the latter without a Legislative Assembly.
• Demand of UT: Buddhist-dominated Leh district had long demanded UT status because it felt neglected by the erstwhile state government, which was dominated by politicians from Kashmir and Jammu.
• Demand for inclusion in Sixth Schedule: Since then, the civil society and political groups in Ladakh have been demanding inclusion under the sixth schedule of the Constitution to protect the land, employment, and cultural identity of Ladakh.

What is the sixth schedule?

• The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 provides for the formation of autonomous administrative divisions — Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) — that have some legislative, judicial, and administrative autonomy within a state.
• The Sixth Schedule applies to the Northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram (three Councils each), and Tripura (one Council).
  • The schedule protects tribal populations providing autonomy to the communities through the creation of autonomous development councils which can frame laws on land, public health, and agriculture.
• The Sixth Schedule entails constitutional safeguards for tribal areas; nearly 80% of Ladakh’s population is tribal, according to the Census 2011.

Need of Inclusion in Sixth Schedule:

• The changed domicile policy in Jammu and Kashmir has raised fears in the region about its own land, employment, demography, and cultural identity.
• The UT has two Hill councils in Leh and Kargil, but neither is under the Sixth Schedule.
• Their powers are limited to the collection of some local taxes such as parking fees and allotment and use of land vested by the Centre.

Difficulty Behind Ladakh’s Inclusion:

• Ladakh’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule would be difficult. The Constitution is very clear, the Sixth Schedule is for the Northeast.
  • For tribal areas in the rest of the country, there is the Fifth Schedule.
  • Notably, no region outside the Northeast has been included in the Sixth Schedule.
  • In fact, even in Manipur, which has predominantly tribal populations in some places, the autonomous councils are not included in the Sixth Schedule.
  • Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, which are totally tribal, are also not in the Sixth Schedule.
• However, it remains the prerogative of the government, it can, if it so decides, bring a Bill to amend the Constitution for this purpose.