Weeks after the Centre proposed inserting a new Article 371(K) in the Constitution to provide special protections for Ladakh, the Apex Body Leh (ABL) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) on Friday (October 23) made public the documents and minutes of their meetings with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

The two bodies released five documents exchanged with MHA officials since May 22 this year. They also shared the records of the minutes of the meeting held on May 22, when a significant breakthrough was achieved: Both sides agreed to the demand for Constitutional safeguards under Article 371(K) and a legislature for the Union Territory (UT).

We explain the reasons behind the bodies making the documents public, what happened in the critical May 22 meeting, and the fault lines within Ladakh’s leadership.

Why did Ladakhi bodies release documents pertaining to Union Home Ministry?

The move to make the records public came after former ABL co-chairman, Thupstan Chhewang, formed a new group and…