'I became the scapegoat, never took foreign funds': Sonam Wangchuk rejects govt’s FCRA charges

Leh: Ladakh-based climate activist and education reformer Sonam Wangchuk has accused the Union government of “witch hunting” after his nonprofit, the Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), lost its licence to receive foreign contributions under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).

The cancellation came just a day after violent protests in Leh over the demand for Ladakh’s statehood left four people dead. The Union Home Ministry alleged Wangchuk’s “provocative speeches” incited mobs to attack a BJP office and that of the local election officer.

A few hours later, the activist, widely seen as the face of Ladakh’s statehood movement, hit back, rejecting the charges and the timing of the government’s action.

“In the series of witch hunting, yesterday’s events were the last, and all blame was put on Sonam Wangchuk,” he said in Leh on Thursday, adding that he had received a notice from the CBI for alleged financial irregularities.

The Home Ministry claimed SECMOL had committed repeated violations of FCRA, including accepting funds from abroad without registration. Wangchuk, however, insisted his institute never sought FCRA approval precisely to avoid foreign donations.

“We did not get FCRA because we don’t want funds from abroad. The United Nations team wanted to take our Passive Solar Heated Building to Afghanistan, and for this, they gave us a fee. We also got fees with tax from Switzerland and Italy organisations for supplying knowledge about our artificial glaciers,” he explained.

He alleged that the government was misrepresenting such consultancy and knowledge-sharing fees as foreign contributions, while summoning him repeatedly over income-tax matters.

Wangchuk, who recently undertook a hunger strike to press Ladakh’s demand for statehood and constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, said the cancellation of SECMOL’s licence and the CBI probe were part of a broader attempt to weaken the movement.

The developments mark a sharp escalation in the standoff between Ladakh’s activists and the Union government. The protests this week have intensified demands for statehood, while raising questions over the Centre’s response to Ladakh’s growing unrest.