Ladakh: Real-life Rancho ends five-day climate fast at 18000 feet
Hundreds of people joined Wangchuk in his demand for safeguards to Ladakh. They include the Leh Apex Body of Peoples Movement for Sixth Schedule and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA).
By Anoushka Caroline Williams Published on 31 Jan 2023 7:08 AM GMT
Ladakh: Sonam Wangchuk, the education reformer who inspired Rancho’s character in Aamir Khan starrer ‘3 idiots’, ended his five-day climate fast on Monday. In a video clip, he explained how he survived at -20 to -40 degree Celsius at an altitude of 18,380 feet in Khardung La. He exhibited distinctive equipment that aided him in the last 5 days.
Hundreds of people joined Wangchuk in his demand for safeguards to Ladakh. They include the Leh Apex Body of Peoples Movement for Sixth Schedule and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA). Apex body and KDA, a separate amalgam of socio-religious, political, and youth organizations, are jointly spearheading a campaign to press for their four-point demands which include full statehood and safeguards under the Sixth schedule of the constitution.
On Saturday, Wangchuk tweeted a copy of a bond that sought an undertaking that he will not make any comments, statements, or public speech. “CALLING LAWYERS OF THE WORLD!!! The #Ladakh UT administration wants me to sign this bond even when only fasts & prayers r happening(.) Pls, advise How right is it, should I silence myself? I don’t mind arrest at all #ClimateFast #6thSchedule #LiFE #saveladakh @AmitShah @narendramodi,” he wrote. He said that he was under house arrest, “actually worse than house arrest”.
“I have announced a five-day climate fast to save and safeguard the Himalayas, the glaciers, Ladakh, and its people under the sixth schedule of Article 244 of the Indian Constitution. I was initially told that the policemen are deployed for my safety and I did not take it otherwise,” he said. Except for the BJP, almost all major political parties, social and religious groups, and student organizations have come together in both Leh and Kargil districts in support of Wangchuk’s demands, including statehood and constitutional safeguards after the region was given union territory status in August 2019. According to Wangchuk, on the first day of the hunger strike, he joined a prayer meeting at the Chokhang Vihara temple at the request of the public but was forcibly taken back by police to HIAL in violation of all rules.
