Congress MP Gowaal Kagada Padavi on Wednesday demanded in Lok Sabha the inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Articles 244(2) and 275(1) of the Constitution deal with the Sixth Schedule and they consist of provisions for the administration of tribal areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.
Raising the issue in Zero Hour, Padavi said the National Commission for Schedule Tribes had suggested in September 2019 that Ladakh should be included in the Sixth Schedule.
"Many groups have also said it. The home ministry has given a reply to the standing committee that it should not be included but there is a fear that businesses and conglomerates will take over the culture and tradition of Ladakh and definitely there is a need to introduce the Sixth Schedule in Ladakh... Fifth and Sixth Schedule should be there in all the scheduled areas including my Nandurbar (Maharashtra) Lok Sabha constituency," he said.
Ladakh, which shares its border with both Pakistan and China, was a part of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. However, after the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, Ladakh was carved out as a Union Territory (UT) without a legislature.
Inclusion under the Sixth Schedule would allow Ladakh to create autonomous districts and regional councils — elected bodies with the power to administrate tribal areas. This would include the power to make laws on subjects such as forest management, agriculture, administration of villages and towns, inheritance, marriage, divorce and social customs.
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She requested the environment ministry to provide financial assistance to deal with the problem.