Prominent climate activist Sonam Wangchuk was apprehended by a police detachment in Leh on Friday, September 26, 2025. This arrest comes just two days after fierce protests in support of Ladakh’s long-standing demands for statehood and the extension of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution resulted in four fatalities and ninety injuries.
Officials confirmed that Mr. Wangchuk was taken into custody at 2:30 p.m. by a police unit under the leadership of Ladakh DGP S. D. Singh Jamwal. As of now, the specific charges brought against Mr. Wangchuk remain undisclosed.
The Home Ministry had previously accused Mr. Wangchuk of inciting the recent violence. He is a key figure in the Leh Apex Body (LAB), which, alongside the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), has been at the forefront of this agitation for over five years. However, Mr. Wangchuk has firmly refuted these allegations, condemning the violence and promptly concluding his fortnight-long hunger strike in its aftermath on Wednesday.