A year after he was detained under the National Security Act (NSA) following the unprecedented violence in Leh on September 24, 2025, climate activist and Leh Apex Body (LAB) leader Sonam Wangchuk on Sunday demanded that the report of the judicial inquiry into the violence be made public.
“After the events of September 24, the Government constituted a Judicial Inquiry Commission headed by Dr Justice B. S. Chauhan, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, to examine what happened that day. Almost a year later, Ladakh is still waiting for its findings. People naturally ask, “Why is it taking so long?” Wangchuk asked.
A HEART TO HEART CHAT WITH THE NATION…
Not just a Press Release.
One year after my first morning in Jodhpur Central Jail where I was kept in total isolation for six months under the draconian NSA, I have more questions than I had before.
Unfortunately there was a media… pic.twitter.com/5sumJPA6eP— Sonam Wangchuck (@Wangchuck66) September 27, 2026
“What did the inquiry find? Who ordered the firing? Was there an order to fire? Were all the prescribed stages of crowd control exhausted before live ammunition was used? Why were people hit in vital parts of their bodies? Could these deaths have been avoided?” he asked.
“Exactly one year ago today, I woke up to my first morning inside Jodhpur Central Jail. I had been detained under the National Security Act on September 26, 2025, and taken roughly 2,000 kilometres away from Ladakh. I would remain there, largely in total isolation, for nearly six months,” he recalled.
“Just two days before my detention, on September 24, Ladakh had witnessed one of the darkest days in its recent history. Four young people lost their lives in police firing, one committed suicide, scores were injured, and many more were arrested and charged with very serious offences,” he stated.
“A year has passed. For the families who lost their loved ones, however, time does not make the questions disappear. If anything, the silence makes those questions louder,” he added.
“These are not questions to be answered by rumours, accusations or counter-accusations. That is exactly why a judicial inquiry was constituted. So let the report come. Let the people know the truth. And if the inquiry establishes wrongdoing, then whoever is responsible—however senior—must be held accountable,” Wangchuk said.
“The longer the report remains unavailable, the more it creates suspicion among ordinary people that inconvenient facts may be getting buried or that those responsible may be protected. The best way for the government to remove such doubts is simple: bring out the truth,” he added.
Judicial probe ordered in October 2025
A judicial probe into the September 24, 2025, violence in Leh, which left four people dead and scores injured, was ordered by the Union Government on October 17, 2025. The Ministry of Home Affairs appointed former Supreme Court judge Dr Justice B. S. Chauhan to head the inquiry. The official terms of reference covered the circumstances leading to the law-and-order situation, the police action and the deaths of the four individuals.
The Ladakh Administration subsequently announced that the Inquiry Commission commenced proceedings on October 27, 2025, and invited people acquainted with the incident to submit statements and supporting documents.
The announcement of the probe paved the way for the resumption of talks between the Union Government and Ladakh’s leadership, which took place on October 22, 2025, in New Delhi.
The Ministry of Home Affairs had appointed Dr Justice B. S. Chauhan, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, to head the inquiry. The commission was tasked with examining the circumstances that led to the law-and-order situation, the police response and the resultant fatalities.
The MHA statement noted: “On September 24, 2025, a serious law and order situation was created in Leh town, resulting in police action that led to the unfortunate death of four individuals.”
It further stated: “In order to ensure an impartial inquiry, the Ministry of Home Affairs has notified a judicial inquiry to be conducted by Dr. Justice B. S. Chauhan (Former Judge, Supreme Court of India) into the circumstances leading to the incident, the police action, and the resultant unfortunate deaths.”
Give the families dignified compensation
Wangchuk also referred to the compensation announced by the Ladakh Administration for the families of those killed and for those injured in the violence.
“Can ₹15 lakh ever compensate a mother for her son, a wife for her husband, or children for their father? Of course not. No amount can,” he said.
“But compensation is also the state’s way of acknowledging the magnitude of a loss and accepting its responsibility towards citizens who have suffered. This is why ₹15 lakh feels painfully inadequate,” he said.
“What makes this even harder to understand is that the UT Administration in Ladakh is able to spend crores of rupees on festival after festival, celebrations and public events. At times, Ladakh has had more than five festivals in a month,” the LAB leader further said.
Six months under the NSA—and then what?
Wangchuk recalled that on September 26, 2025, he was detained under the National Security Act, one of India’s preventive detention laws, and sent to Jodhpur Central Jail.
“For nearly six months, I remained there. Then, on March 14, 2026, while my detention was being challenged before the Supreme Court, the Government revoked the detention order and I walked free,” he said.
“I therefore ask a very simple question. If I really was such a danger to national security or public order that I had to be taken away from Ladakh and kept under the NSA, then why am I free today?” he asked.
“And if I were not such a danger, then who would answer for the six months of my life that were taken away? I do not ask this question out of bitterness. Those six months taught me a great deal. But the question is important because tomorrow it may not be Sonam Wangchuk,” he added.