Leh, Oct 23: The Ladakh administration has defended its decision to cancel the land allotment granted to the Himalayan Institute of Alternative Learning (HIAL), founded by climate activist and innovator Sonam Wangchuk, telling the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh that the allotment had lapsed due to non-payment of mandatory dues and failure to execute a lease deed within the stipulated period.
In an affidavit filed in response to HIAL’s petition challenging the cancellation, Leh Deputy Commissioner and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council Chief Executive Officer Romil Singh Donk maintained that the conditional allotment of 1,076 kanals and one marla of land at Phyang Thang had lapsed by operation of law on May 5, 2019. The administration said the original allotment order, issued on May 5, 2018, required the institute to execute the lease deed and deposit the prescribed land premium within one year.
According to the administration, HIAL neither paid the required land premium and ground rent nor completed the formalities necessary to take possession of the land. It has argued that the cancellation order issued on August 21, 2025, was legally justified because the conditions attached to the original allotment had not been fulfilled.
The affidavit also disputes the institute’s account of its compliance with the allotment conditions. The administration has referred to official records which, it says, show no payments or written communication during the initial period and subsequent correspondence in which the institute sought a waiver of the land premium and ground rent. It has further questioned whether the institute fulfilled the stated purpose of establishing an alternative university, asserting that HIAL is not a recognised university and that its courses are not affiliated with a statutory university.
The administration has opposed the petition as lacking merit and argued that the institute cannot claim a continuing right over the land after failing to satisfy the conditions governing the allotment. These are the administration’s submissions before the court and have not, by themselves, determined the outcome of the dispute.
HIAL has challenged the cancellation, and its chief executive, Gitanjali Angmo, has disputed the administration’s claims. The High Court proceedings will determine the legal issues arising from the allotment conditions, the alleged defaults and the subsequent cancellation. [KNT]
