Ladakh administration slammed activist Sonam Wangchuk’s October 22 claims, insisting only one liquor shop opened after an auction on October 14, 2026. The press release said the activist’s allegations about 500–1,000 women protesting and a rush of new outlets were “false, baseless and totally imaginary.”
The new excise policy, issued June 1, 2026, had initially allowed up to three shop licences in Leh, but the lieutenant governor rolled it back on August 26 after public backlash, restoring the 2025‑26 framework that caps licences at two per ward. The ward‑6 shop now operates, while the ward‑4 auction received no bids.
Wangchuk accused Lt. Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena of acting arbitrarily, alleging that bars were opening near schools and in every neighbourhood. He also claimed that a sit‑in protest by women had been organised to oppose the policy’s liberalisation.
The administration reports 50 bar‑restaurant retail vends across Ladakh—38 in Leh, seven in Nubra, three in Zanskar and two in Changthang—plus two beer bars and nine hotel licences in Leh, four of which were issued this year. The lone shop in ward‑6, after a successful auction, is the only retail outlet now serving the region’s residents.
The government will enforce the 2025‑26 excise policy and will review any future shop openings in response to public feedback, while the activist’s claims are being dismissed as misinformation.