Haji Asgar Ali Karbalai is an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

political and social leader from

Kargil Kargil ( lbj, ) is a city and a joint capital of the union territory of Ladakh, India. It is also the headquarters of the Kargil district. It is the second-largest city in Ladakh after Leh. Kargil is located to the east of Srinagar in Jam ...

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu and ...

. He has been the chief executive councillor of

Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil (LAHDC Kargil), is an Autonomous District Council that administers the Kargil District of Ladakh, India. History In October 1993, the central Government of India and the state Government o ...

twice. As of December 2014, he is a member of the Legislative assembly of Jammu and Kashmir. He is an influential member of the socio-religious organisation

Imam Khomeini Ruhollah Khomeini, Ayatollah Khomeini, Imam Khomeini ( , ; ; 17 May 1900 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian political and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989. He was the founder of ...

Memorial.

Early life and family

He is the son of Sheikh Ghulam Abbas hailing from Bagh-e-Khumaini, Kargil. His father Ghulam Abass Karbalai was born in

Karbala Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

into a

Shia Muslim Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most ...

family and did his basic schooling studying Islamic theology there. During the massacre of

Shias Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, mos ...

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein ( ; ar, صدام حسين, Ṣaddām Ḥusayn; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolution ...

's Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, Karbalai along with his family migrated to his hometown Kargil, in Jammu and Kashmir, India (now in

Social and political life

He began actively participating in social activities after getting inspiration from the 1979

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

. By the year 2003 he had established himself on the socio-political front in the district. He was elected as a Councillor in the local administrative council - The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council Kargil - from Poyen constituency. He had earlier been a member of the

Progressive Alliance. He proposed the issue of granting Ladakh the status of Greater Ladakh, for the first time at an international platform, in a conference at

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

which was a new clause in the

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

issue. He is vocal about supporting the Kashmiris based on centuries of traditional, economic and religious ties but is stiffly opposed to the idea of separatism. He was elected as a member of the first LAHDC Kargil (representing Poyen constituency) in 2003 and served as a councillor. He became the second chief executive councillor of LAHDC-Kargil as the previous government could not meet the majority seats and was toppled down soon. During the second term of LAHDC-Kargil he acted as the leader of the opposition party. During the third term of LAHDC-Kargil, he represented Pashkyum constituency and led his party to a second term. He won a majority and became chairman/CEC. In 2014, he got elected as a member of the J&K Legislative assembly from the 49 - Kargil Assembly constituency.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Kargil district Balti people Indian Shia Muslims Indian National Congress politicians from Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir MLAs 2014–2018 Jammu and Kashmir local politicians Social leaders Indian National Congress politicians from Ladakh {{JammuKashmir-INC-politician-stub