efore addressing the developments in Ladakh over the past few weeks, let me begin with news from another part of India—Bihar. After months of public protests, opposition campaigns in the streets and debates in parliament; even Supreme Court intervention, the Election Commission of India has declared more than five million people (some reports put the number as high as 6.8 million) ineligible to vote. The ruling comes through its ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

According to one report, in one constituency nearly 45 percent of the votes struck off the rolls are Muslims and about 20 percent Other Backward Castes. This has not only confirmed the worst fears of the opposition, which has traditionally depended on these communities for electoral support, but critically, deepened the anxieties of the communities, who see it as a step toward stripping them of their citizenship rights. There is now growing talk that the intervention may be replicated in other states, especially those governed by parties opposed to the BJP.

Developments in Ladakh over the past few weeks are the proverbial other side of the coin. The region has been a critical buffer zone between China and India. It is known not just for its scenic beauty but also for deadly skirmishes between Chinese and Indian armies. Most people in the region wish to remain within India; many have welcomed even the abrogation of Article 370 that had kept them tied to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the region is now being turned into another war zone. Like Muslims in........

© The News on Sunday