Curfew remains enforced in Leh, on September 28, 2025.
| Photo Credit: ANI
The bodies of the two civilians, who were killed on September 24 during street protests in Ladakh, were cremated in Leh on Sunday (September 28, 2025), with only close relatives allowed to attend the last rites. A curfew was enforced for the fifth straight day.
Officials said the last rites of the victims, Jigmet Dorjay, 25, a resident of Kharnakling village, and Stanzin Namgyal, 23, a resident of Igoo village, were held in Leh town between 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
As funeral prayers were conducted and relatives paid tribute, security was tightened across Leh town. Most sensitive locations were barricaded with barbed wire. The Internet also continued to remain suspended in Leh.
Locals said the funeral prayers of two other victims, Rinchen Dadul, 20, from Hanu village, and Tsewang Tharchin, 46, from Skur Buchan village, are scheduled for Monday (September 29, 2025). Tharchin served in the Ladakh Scouts and took part in the 1999 Kargil War.
Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta held a security review meeting, which was attended by top officials.
Four civilians died, and around 90 were injured as protesters, supporting demands for Statehood and Sixth Schedule status, clashed with security forces. This came a day after two protesters on hunger strike were hospitalised. A three-week hunger strike was being spearheaded by now-detained climate activist Sonam Wangchuk.
The J&K Pradesh Congress Committee president, Tariq Hameed Karra has responded to the events in Leh, saying, “The Ladakh government and the Centre are hugely mistaken if they believe normalcy will return to Leh with the arrest of Mr. Wangchuk.”
“The unrest in Ladakh is the BJP’s own creation. The same people who once cheered Article 370 abrogation now feel betrayed by unkept promises. Youth anger, joblessness, and denial of Sixth Schedule rights have pushed them to the streets,” Mr. Karra added.
Leader’s plea rejected
Meanwhile, the Leh administration turned down a request from Tashi Gyalson, Chief Executive Councillor of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Leh (LAHDC-Leh), to attend the last rites. The Leh administration has also extended the closure of all educational institutes till September 28.
Mr. Gyalson, a BJP leader, also joined the voices demanding an inquiry into the violence that broke out on September 24 in Leh. “I have written to Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta and demanded an inquiry into the provocations that resulted in violence and also a probe into indiscriminate use of force against protesters,” Mr. Gyalson said.
Meanwhile, three-member teams of the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) and Leh Apex Body are scheduled to visit Delhi today (September 29) for a preparatory meeting with officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs. It will be followed by the main meeting with a High Powered Committee of the MHA on October 6.
Published – September 28, 2025 09:52 pm IST
