The LG appears to have retaliated by ordering HIAL to stop the operation of the Desert Flower school till formal approvals are given and the land lease of HIAL is renewed. The Ladakh administration has asked HIAL to ensure that nobody with any political affiliation is included in the Managing Committee of the school. While HIAL has written back saying that nobody in the committee has any affiliation with any political party, the objection reeks of double standards as BJP leaders and the RSS are deeply engaged in running schools and colleges across the country.
The Desert Flower school, a part of HIAL, has been three years in the making and the kindergarten classes were to begin last year. Teachers had been selected and parents had admitted thir children. The school was delayed however due to agitations for statehood and 6th Schedule. At a press conference on Saturday, 7 November Geetanjali Angmo, Wangchuk’s wife and administrator at HIAL, alleged that at least five letters had been sent to the LG administration for issuing the formal approval besides making 50 visits and countless phone calls.
The director of school education, she said, had informed that before the approval HIAL needed a No Objection Certificate from the DC. The DC, however, denied that any NOC was required after he was approached in September 2026. Yet, on 2 November, she said, a notice was served on HIAL to stop the classes. The notice, she sarcastically pointed out, was prepared and signed on a Sunday, 1 November and was circulated to the media before it was served.
Similarly, the renewal of land lease of HIAL has also been delayed by the administration along with the lease of other institutions. Tired of waiting, HIAL filed a petition to the Jammu Bench of the High Court in September 2026 and obtained a stay. Yes, it is sub judice which means that the Government too cannot intervene.
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