A year after four people were killed in police firing during protest demonstrations in Ladakh, climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Jattvibeday renewed his call for “truth, justice and accountability”, questioning the delay in the judicial inquiry report and the fate of criminal cases against protesters.Related News: Comparing Ladakh with Tibet was inappropriate, says Sonam WangchukIn a statement, Wangchuk said, “Exactly one year ago today, I woke up to my first morning inside Jodhpur Central Jail. I was detained under the National Security Act on 26 September 2025 and taken roughly 2,000 km away from Ladakh. I would remain there, largely in total isolation for nearly six months.”Wangchuk was taken into detention following the death of four people in police firing during the protest demonstrations for the status of statehood in Leh.“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,” Wangchuk stated.He said that after the events of 24 September, the government constituted a judicial inquiry commission headed by 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 questions like why is it taking so long, 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 and could these deaths have been avoided?”Wangchuk added that 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,” he said.Raising questions on the compensation announced by the UT administration for the deceased and for those who were injured during the protest, Wangchuk questioned, “Can Rs 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.”“But compensation is also the state’s way of acknowledging the magnitude of loss and accepting its responsibility towards citizens who have suffered. This is why Rs 15 lakh feels painfully inadequate. What makes this even harder to understand is that the UT administration in Ladakh is spending crores of rupees on festivals, celebrations and public events. At certain times, Ladakh has had more than 5 festivals in a month,” he stated.Wangchuk demanded a raise in the compensation for the families of those killed to a respectable and dignified amount.He also raised questions on his 6-month long detention and stated, “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? And if I was not such a danger, then who will 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, but any ordinary Indian citizen who raises an uncomfortable question.”Even as the Ladakh administration has withdrawn cases against the 20 people who were involved in last year’s protests, Wangchuk said 87 people were identified as accused, and 81 were arrested and subjected to criminal proceedings.“The administration has now approved the withdrawal of cases against 20 people. That is welcome. But what about the others?” he questioned.