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Chilling accounts of the killings of three Lamas in Kargil district are reaching the people of Leh. This is making them restless and, officials fear, could lead to further unrest. Leh continues to be tense Onkar Singh in Leh Though day curfew was lifted in Leh by the district administration on Sunday morning, the town continues to be tense. The situation could take a turn for the worse, commented a hotelier who has spent 70 years in this town. The district administration had to clamp indefinite curfew after news of three lamas being killed by militants in Kargil district reached Leh on July 12. "It was a reprisal against derogatory remarks made against the holy Quran by an officer bearer of the Ladakh Buddhist Association. The LBA denied any such remark. Possibly some elements bent upon creating mischief deliberately distorted the comments. The same was done by some vested interests in the Buddhist community and things went out of hand," said a top official of the Leh administration. According to Leh Deputy Commissioner Navin Chaudhary, the tough measures taken by the administration prevented the situation getting out of hand. "We are in touch with the authorities in Kargil," Chaudhary told rediff.com "The truck that was used by the militants to escape from the scene of the crime was seized from the Gandharbal area. The driver of the truck and its owner are being interrogated to determine the identity of the militants. The driver told interrogators that the militants got off 25km from the scene of the crime and disappeared. We suspect that they have also killed a German tourist, or kidnapped him. We found his travel documents in the truck," Chaudhary added. What worries the district administration of Leh more than anything else is the arrival of Nima Gyalpo. The lama held a series of meetings with over 200 lamas from the nearby gompas and also addressed meetings organized by the LBA. In these meetings, he gave chilling accounts of the killings of the three lamas, and this might lead to further unrest, officials fear. In addition to this, office-bearers of the LBA, who had gone to Rungdum to take part in the last rites of the three lamas, have also returned to Leh. They have their own stories to tell. The LBA had called an emergency meeting on Monday evening to discuss the developments and chalk out a future course of action. "We have already taken a number of steps in the last one week. We are making inquiries about the possible hideouts of the militants in Leh district and will be trying to flush them out. We are determined to keep the situation under control," a senior police official told rediff.com on Monday morning. Rigzin Spalbar, a member of the Ladakh Hill Council, alleged that some mischief-makers had raised pro-Pakistan slogans in front of the mosque in Leh in the presence of the police. But Navin Chaudhary denied it. "I received no such report," he said emphatically. But he is not taking any chances and is gearing up the administration to meet any eventuality. "I know we have a hard task ahead of us. We are prepared to meet the challenge," he said. The Rediff Interviews Tell us what you think of this interview

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