A major concern of the Buddhist Ladakhis is the population increase by Muslims in Ladakh, where the latter are in a minority, as part of a plan to disrupt the existing demographic patterns. If true, the consequences could be socio-economic as well as political in nature. This worrying aspect came to my attention when locals in Ladakh told me what I have written here.

And for those indulging in such practices, the law helps them too: in India, polygamy for Muslims is allowed but not for other communities. As a result, large Muslim families are not a surprise with each wife bearing more than a couple of children. The Buddhists feel Muslims are spreading their influence in the mostly Buddhist areas of Ladakh by consciously having many more children – some men have been said to father over 20 – and buying property. The Buddhists believe the money to buy such property and support large families comes from the rich benefactors in the Middle East.

Of course, it would require more than just anecdotal evidence to establish a trend here. So far this has not been confirmed by the 2001 population census. Irrespective of the true picture, what may be worrying are such sentiments going around, adding further fuel to the already charged up atmosphere of Kashmir.

Fortunately, the situation seems to be nothing close to the violent relations between the Hindus and Muslims in the Jammu and Srinagar areas. Hopefully the Buddha will shed some enlightenment in Ladakh at least before things go out of hand here too.