New Delhi/Leh, September 25: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched an inquiry into alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) by institutions founded by Ladakh-based educationist and activist Sonam Wangchuk, officials said Thursday. No FIR has been filed so far, though the probe is based on a complaint from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Wangchuk confirmed that a CBI team visited the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives Ladakh (HIAL) and the Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) about 10 days ago. “The order said we have not taken clearance under FCRA to receive foreign funds. We don’t want to be dependent on foreign funds, but we export our knowledge and raise revenue. In three such instances, they thought it was foreign contribution,” he said.
The activist added that investigators were seeking records of foreign funds between 2022 and 2024 but later expanded the scope to earlier years. “They began asking for accounts of 2021 and 2020. Then they went to our school asking for documents outside the complaint’s purview,” Wangchuk alleged.
According to him, the transactions under scrutiny involved service agreements with bodies such as the United Nations, a Swiss university, and an Italian organisation. “It was a very dignified assignment. They saw it and they were convinced. They understood it is not helping them, so they began asking for accounts outside that period,” he claimed.
Wangchuk said the CBI teams were still “camping in Ladakh and rigorously going through records,” though he himself had not been questioned. He also noted that both HIAL and SECMOL provide free education to students, with stipends offered for project-based work.
The educationist linked the current investigation to what he called a series of actions against him. “First, the local police filed a sedition case. Then there was an order to take back the land for HIAL, citing unpaid lease amounts. Now the CBI and income tax summons,” he said. He alleged that even though Ladakh has no tax, “I voluntarily pay taxes, and I get summons. Then they resurrected a four-year-old complaint that labourers were not paid properly. It is guns blazing from all sides on us.”
The developments come as Ladakh witnessed its worst violence since 1989 on Wednesday. Youths set fire to vehicles, attacked the BJP headquarters and the Hill Council office in Leh, forcing police and paramilitary forces to fire teargas shells. Four people died and at least 80 others, including 40 police personnel, were injured, officials said.
Wangchuk, who began a hunger strike on September 10 demanding statehood and Ladakh’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule, denied government accusations that he incited the violence. “To say it was instigated by me, or sometimes by the Congress, is to find a scapegoat, rather than addressing the core of the problem. They may be clever in making somebody else a scapegoat, but they are not wise,” he said.
The activist warned that authorities appeared to be “building up a case to bring me under the Public Safety Act and throw me in jail for two years,” but added, “I am ready for that. Sonam Wangchuk in jail may cause them more problems than free Sonam Wangchuk.”
The Union Home Ministry had earlier issued a statement blaming “provocative statements” by Wangchuk and “politically motivated individuals” for sabotaging dialogue with Ladakhi groups. The ministry said the situation was controlled by 4 p.m. Wednesday and cautioned against circulating old or misleading videos.
“It is well known that the Government of India has been actively engaged with Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance. A series of meetings have been held through the high-powered committee and sub-committees,” the statement said, adding that the next round of talks is scheduled for September 25 and 26, followed by a high-level meeting on October 6.
Lt Governor Kavinder Gupta termed the violence “heart-wrenching” and said, “Everyone has the right to speak up in a peaceful manner in a democratic system, but what happened today was not spontaneous and was the result of a conspiracy. We will not spare those people who have spoiled the atmosphere here.” A curfew has since been imposed in Leh to prevent further unrest.
