On Tuesday (14th October), the District Magistrate of Leh informed the Supreme Court that Ladakhi activist Sonam Wangchuk “had been indulging in activities prejudicial to the Security of the State, Maintenance of Public Order and Services essential to the community…”.
The district magistrate of Leh said this in an affidavit filed before the bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria. The affidavit came in response to the petition filed by Sonam Wangchuk’s wife Gitanjali Angmo, challenging his detention under the National Security Act, 1980.
“The order of detention came to be passed by me after duly considering the material placed before me, as mandated under law, and after arriving at a subjective satisfaction on the circumstances that prevailed within the local limits of the jurisdiction where…” the magistrate stated in the affidavit.
“Wangchuk had been indulging in activities prejudicial to the Security of the State, Maintenance of Public Order and Services essential to the community, as mentioned in the grounds of detention. I was satisfied and continue to be satisfied with the detention of the detainee,” the affidavit adds.
The Leh DM stated that when Sonam Wangchuk was detained on 26th September 2025, the activist was “categorically informed both of the factum of his detention under the National Security Act, 1980, as well as the factum of his transfer to Central Jail, Jodhpur, Rajasthan”.
Regarding the he communication of grounds of detention in terms of Section 8 of the NSA and Article 22 of the Constitution, the Leh DM said, “Procedural safeguards under Article 22 as incorporated in Section 8 of the National Security Act, 1980, particularly and the National Security Act in general have been faithfully and strictly adhered to.”
