Tashi Targais, President, Sonam Wangyal Memorial Committee highlighted the struggle and contribution made by Late Sonam Wangyal to uplift the society when Ladakh was facing multifarious problems in terms of everything. 

To realize the significance of the day and to remember his excellent contribution to the society, he proposed to honor him with the Kabir Award.

 Yangphel, Sakti who also worked with Late Sonam Wangyal said, “I remember that he was a man of integrity.  It was he who brought an end to the evil system like forced labor and burden of debt in Ladakh.”

Late Sonam Wangyal was born in Chemdey village on January 26, 1925. He rose to become a great figure in the political and economic development of Ladakh in the second half of the 20th century.

Late Sonam Wangyal was elected as the member of the legislative council of J&K in the year 1957 and served till 1967. In 1972, he became the MLA. He also played an active role in the 1982-84 campaign for ST status for Ladakh and went on hunger strike for 16 days in January 1984.The then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visited Leh and assured to grant Scheduled Tribe Status and withdrew his hunger strike. However, this decision only got to fulfill after six years in 1989.

In 1989, during the communal clash between the Buddhist and Muslim in Leh, Wangyal did not support LBA’s plan to impose the social and economic boycott against the Muslim minority community. Although in the favor of UT demand, he opposed the communal division outright and told that the imposition of an economic and social boycott was in contravention of the spirit of the Indian constitution and the country’s democratic and secular tradition.

He worked to address the social and economic injustices in Ladakh especially brought to an end the system of forced labor, freeing the common people from the burden of debt and high interest that had kept them close to starvation.