Srinagar, Nov. 11 -- The Ladakh administration on Tuesday announced the schedule for the Ladakh Hill Development Council (LAHDC) elections, with polling on December 4 and the entire process concluding by December 8. However, the electoral rollout triggered a political backlash across the region, including a complete shutdown in Kargil town and an election boycott by Leh bodies. State election commissioner Sudhanshu Pandey announced the timeline under Rule 12 of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (Rules), 2026. The notification applies across all eight newly configured districts of the UT-comprising Leh and Kargil as well as the newly created council divisions of Drass, Zanskar, Sankoo, Sham, Nubra and Changthang. According to the SEC schedule, the deadline for filing nominations is set for November 17, followed by scrutiny on November 18 and a withdrawal deadline of November 20. Polling will take place from 8am to 5pm on December 4. The council poll announcement follows earlier notifications issued by chief electoral officer (CEO) Rahul Sharma for local municipal and panchayat elections. General elections for the municipal committees of Leh and Kargil, along with panchayat halqas across the UT, are scheduled to run concurrently on November 21, concluding by November 30. Meanwhile, shops, commercial establishments, and private offices remained shut in Kargil town as well as outlying areas such as Drass, Sankoo, and Zanskar. Public transport remained off the roads under a security blanket of reinforced police forces deployed as a precautionary measure. Organised by the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)-an umbrella group of political, religious, trade, and civil society organisations-the shutdown exempted medical facilities, water supply, and school buses. Three major organisations-the Ladakh Nambardar Association, the Ladakh Gompa Association, and the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA)-announced a boycott of both the panchayat and municipal committee elections. LBA president Chering Dorjay Lakrook, who also heads the Leh Apex Body (LAB), cited dissatisfaction with the newly finalised 100-constituency delimitation process, unfulfilled promises regarding liquor policy reforms following protests by women's groups, and a lack of faith in the administration's sincerity. Meanwhile, following a poll boycott announced by Ladakh bodies, Ladakh chief secretary Ashish Kundra appealed for good sense to prevail among the public and leaders, calling it a turning point in the region's democratic journey. "I can only appeal to the good sense of the people and leaders to prevail. I personally feel that this exercise is a watershed moment for Ladakh and democracy in Ladakh," Kundra said while addressing a press conference in Leh. On the Kargil shutdown, Kundra said that as part of democratic expression, there are many manifestations by people who are not fully satisfied with, let us say, the delimitation of a constituency or for any other reason. "If some of them choose to manifest it by asking people to shut down their shops, that is also their democratic right, and the government has no quarrel with that." Kundra said 55 sarpanches and 1,186 panchs have been elected unopposed in the ongoing panchayat electoral process, while 36 out of the 100 seats in the eight LAHDCs have been reserved for women. In the Leh municipal council, elections will be held in all 21 wards, while four out of 17 wards in the Kargil municipal council have elected representatives unopposed, Kundra said. "The next round of talks between Ladakh's representative groups and the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA), which was scheduled for October 22, is expected to be held after the ongoing electoral process concludes," Kundra said. Kundra said the proposal to hold the next round of talks between the representative groups and the MHA was referred to the SEC for clearance in view of the model code of conduct currently in force. He said the talks could proceed once the commission's approval was received. The deadlock between the Centre and the KDA and LAB continues after several rounds of talks remained inconclusive. The Ladakh groups are demanding statehood and the Sixth Schedule. However, the central government has not yet agreed to the demands and has decided to create new districts and hold panchayat, municipal council and committee polls. Earlier, Ladakh groups had blamed the Centre for trying to create divisions among the Ladakh groups fighting for statehood and the Sixth Schedule....