‘Ready to stay in jail’: Sonam Wangchuk demands judicial inquiry into Leh violence deaths

Sonam Wangchuk

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, detained under the National Security Act (NSA) and currently lodged in Jodhpur Central Jail, has sent a message from prison expressing solidarity with the people of Ladakh and calling for peace and justice.

The message, shared by Wangchuk’s elder brother Ka Tsetan Dorjey Ley and his lawyer Mustafa Haji after meeting him in jail, assured supporters that he was “doing well, both physically and mentally.”

Wangchuk offered condolences to the families of those killed in the recent Leh violence and reiterated his demand for an independent judicial inquiry into the deaths. “There should be an independent judicial inquiry into the killing of our four people, and unless that is done, I am prepared to stay in jail,” he said.

Sonam Wangchuk’s message from Central Jail, Jodhpur. Today on the 4th of October Ka Tsetan Dorjey Ley ( Sonam Wangchuk’s elder brother ) and I ( Mustafa Haji- Lawyer ) met Mr. Sonam Wangchuk at Jodhpur Central Jail. Mr. Sonam has conveyed the following message to the people of…

— Mustafa Haji (@Mustafa_haji_) October 5, 2025

Expressing unwavering support for the Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), Wangchuk added, “I stand firmly with the people of Ladakh in our genuine constitutional demand for Sixth Schedule and Statehood, and whatever actions Apex Body takes in the interest of Ladakh, I am with them wholeheartedly.”

He also urged his supporters to maintain calm and unity, saying, “I appeal to the people to keep peace and unity and continue our struggle peacefully—in the true Gandhian way of non-violence.”

Wangchuk was detained on September 26, two days after protests demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh turned violent, leaving four people dead and around 90 injured.

The Supreme Court is set to hear on Monday a plea filed by Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali J Angmo, challenging his detention under the NSA and seeking his immediate release. The case will be heard by a bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria on October 6.