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| Loyalty test in Ladakh | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, May 13: As Ladakh voted overwhelmingly in today’s polling, the ballots have sealed the time-tested religious loyalties of the warring Buddhist and Muslims which was on a rare trial.
The rivalry runs deep in this cold desert where the two communities swear by the candidates from their respective faiths.
The Congress has fielded Buddhist monk P. Namgiyal as part of its alliance with the ruling National Conference. But his success rests largely on how he succeeds in bridging the religious divide.
The Congress believes it will. “We will get both Buddhist and Muslim votes”, said Mohammad Shafi, a Congress leader from Leh.
But many in Ladakh, where the two communities have been bred on rancour against each other, take the assertion with a pinch of salt.
The constituency comprises Buddhist majority Leh and Muslim-dominated Kargil. The Buddhists want union territory status for all of Ladakh. The Muslims, who outnumber Buddhists narrowly, oppose the demand and favour stronger ties with the Valley.
Traditionally, Kargil has remained a pocket borough of the National Conference (NC), which has championed the Muslim cause.
The Congress had been a dominant force in Leh earlier. But that equation has changed, with the Ladakh Union Territory Front (LUTF) emerging a strong force.
The decision to concede the seat to the Congress has created fissures in the NC’s ranks. A senior NC leader, Ghulam Hassan Khan, has rebelled and is contesting as an Independent with the backing of Islamia School, an influential Muslim body in Kargil.
Sources in the NC said many of its leaders were openly canvassing for Khan. Chief minister Omar Abdullah and his father Farooq Abdullah had to issue a joint call today urging people to vote for the Congress nominee.
The Congress too is feeling the heat. Its senior leader in Kargil, Asgar Karbalai, has revolted against the choice of a candidate from Leh and is in the fray as an Independent.
“The Congress had promised us that the candidate would be Kargil but at the decision was changed at the eleventh hour, forcing me to contest as an Independent candidate,” Karbalai said.
Namgiyal, despite being a Buddhist, is facing an uphill task of wooing his community. His primary concern is the LUTF, which is a voice of many Buddhists and has now aligned with the BJP-led NDA in the hope of achieving its union territory goal. The Congress opposes the demand.
“These divisions have made the contest four-cornered, among NC rebel Hassan Khan, Congress rebel Asgar Karbai, official Congress candidate Namgiyal and the LUTF candidate,” said Leh chief executive officer Tsering Dorge. “But the main contest is between the LUTF and Khan,” he added.
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