Sonam Wangchuk has backed his wife’s criticism, accusing the Ladakh administration of obstructing education while allowing other activities. The dispute comes amid an ongoing High Court battle over the land allotted to HIAL.
BY PC Bureau
November 4, 2026: Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and his wife Gitanjali J. Angmo, co-founder and CEO of the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL), have accused the Ladakh administration of targeting their educational initiative after officials directed the institute to halt activities at its newly opened Desert Flower School in Phyang.
Describing the action as a “witch-hunt”, Angmo said the administration had repeatedly delayed clearances and then issued a notice after 50 children had already enrolled in the kindergarten.
Addressing a press conference in Leh on Wednesday alongside her husband, Angmo challenged the Ladakh administration’s claim that the school had begun functioning without the necessary approvals. She said HIAL had repeatedly approached government offices, submitted written representations and sought clarification about the lease and regulatory requirements, but had received no definitive response.
The controversy follows a November 1 notice issued by the Tehsildar’s office in Leh, directing Angmo to stop all activities at Desert Flower School and maintain “strict status quo” until the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh decides the pending dispute involving HIAL’s land allotment.
The Ladakh administration alleged that classes and other activities at the Phyang school had commenced without obtaining the requisite consent, clearances or approvals from the competent authorities. It also referred to a September 22 communication in which Angmo had sought a No Objection Certificate (NOC) or clearance for the proposed members of the school’s managing committee.
The notice invoked the ongoing proceedings before the High Court and advised HIAL against taking any further steps towards the school’s functioning until a final judicial decision or further directions from the court.
Angmo, however, disputed the Ladakh administration’s position and questioned why officials had not acted when HIAL first approached them about the required permissions.
“We got a notice from them in August last year regarding the signing of the lease. We had sent them five letters, visited the office and called several times. However, their lease policy was not ready, and it is still not ready,” she said.
Here’s our Press Conference on…
THE LG LADAKH’s SHAHI FARMAAN ON OUR SCHOOL…
CLOSE SCHOOLS & OPEN LIQUOR BARS
Let’s hope that the media houses that carried the presser from the LG Administration so eagerly will also be jaust and fair enough to carry our response too… and prove to the nation that India is still not so poor on the Global Press Freedom Index.
As I said earlier this evening…
” There’s a lot of raita spread on internet/news about our school.
India’s Parliamentary Committee on Education recommended HIAL to be replicated all over India. Victoria & Albert Museum London has a permanent display on it. Time Magazine featured it’s projects in TIME 100 Climate solutions. And yet… They want it closed ! “We’re compelled to do an online Press Conference at 5.15 pm today.
— Sonam Wangchuk (@Wangchuk66) November 4, 2026
She alleged that officials in the Deputy Commissioner’s office and the Assistant Commissioner’s office had verbally assured HIAL that construction could proceed even though the lease deed had not been signed.
Angmo said she had also informed the administration on October 30 that Desert Flower School would open on November 2. Despite having advance information, she said, the authorities issued the notice only after the school had enrolled 50 children between the ages of three and five.
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“Why issue the notice only after classes have started?” she asked.
She argued that if the administration had concerns about the school’s infrastructure, furniture, staff or other requirements, officials could have inspected the premises and communicated the deficiencies before the opening.
Calling the notice “baseless”, Angmo said HIAL had made sustained efforts to comply with administrative requirements . She accused Ladakh officials of creating obstacles instead of facilitating an educational initiative that, according to her, had been developed in response to demand from local parents.
“This government is incompetent and indulges in witch-hunting. They do not know how to run educational institutes but are good at stalling others from doing so,” she said.
In particularly sharp criticism of the bureaucracy, she said Ladakh’s officials were behaving “worse than the Britishers” by obstructing the establishment of a kindergarten.
Angmo maintained that Desert Flower School was a not-for-profit initiative under HIAL and had been developed with financial support from public sector undertakings after due diligence. She said the project was intended to provide young children with an alternative learning environment suited to Ladakh social, cultural and ecological conditions.Wangchuk links school dispute to wider policy disagreements
Wangchuk supported Angmo’s criticism and placed the school dispute in the context of his wider disagreements with the Ladakh administration.
In a post on X accompanying the press conference video, he described the directive as the Lieutenant Governor’s “shahi farmaan” and wrote: “CLOSE SCHOOLS & OPEN LIQUOR BARS.”
He also drew attention to HIAL’s national and international recognition. Among the distinctions he cited were a parliamentary committee recommendation for replicating aspects of its educational model across India, a permanent display at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, and its inclusion in TIME magazine’s list of 100 climate solutions.
Wangchuk expressed hope that media organisations which had reported the administration’s position would also give HIAL an opportunity to present its response.
The school controversy comes amid a prolonged dispute between HIAL and the Union Territory administration over the institute’s land. In August 2025, the administration cancelled the land allotment made to HIAL, prompting the institute to approach the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh through a writ petition.
The dispute concerns 1,076 kanals (approximately 134.5 acres) and one marla of land allotted to the institute. The administration had cited alleged non-compliance with land-allotment conditions, including issues relating to unpaid dues and the execution of the lease deed. HIAL has challenged the cancellation, and the case remains pending before the High Court.
The latest notice has brought the land dispute into the functioning of an educational institution attended by young children. HIAL argues that the school is an ongoing educational activity and that stopping it would directly affect the interests of the enrolled children.
In its written response to the Tehsildar, the institute requested that the November 1 notice be withdrawn so that the school’s functioning would not be disrupted. It also reiterated its commitment to complying with lawful directions.
Angmo’s position is that the school should not be made to bear the consequences of an unresolved administrative dispute, particularly when parents have already enrolled their children and classes have begun.
The administration, meanwhile, maintains that the institute must respect the pending judicial proceedings and refrain from taking steps that could prejudice the case.
With the land allotment dispute still before the High Court, the immediate question is whether Desert Flower School can continue functioning while the legal proceedings remain unresolved. HIAL has made clear that it intends to defend the school’s functioning and does not want the education of the 50 children to be interrupted.
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