Article 370 Supreme Court upholds abrogation of Article 370, says Assembly polls must be held by September 2024
By arpitadeo | Published: December 11, 2023 03:14 PM2023-12-11T15:14:24+5:302023-12-11T15:14:24+5:30
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Article 370 was a provision in the Indian Constitution that granted special autonomy to the region of Jammu and Kashmir. It was a temporary provision included in the Constitution in 1949, allowing Jammu and Kashmir to have its own constitution and decision-making powers, except in defense, communications, and foreign affairs.
In 2019, the Indian government made a decision to revoke the special status granted to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370.
Verdict by the Supreme Court
There was a united verdict by a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court on petitions challenging the 2019 decision to scrap the special status. Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud mentioned three judgments by the bench.
The Supreme Court stated that it doesn't need to adjudicate on the validity of the presidential proclamation in Jammu & Kashmir since petitioners have not challenged it. The petitioner's contention that the Centre cannot take any decision during a proclamation under Article 356 was deemed unacceptable by the Supreme Court.
The court stated that Jammu and Kashmir did not retain an element of sovereignty after joining India and became an integral part of India, as reflected in Articles 1 and 370. The Supreme Court affirmed that Article 370 was a temporary provision, introduced due to war conditions in the state, and was meant for the constitutional integration of Jammu and Kashmir with the Union.
The Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir was not intended to be a permanent body. When it ceased to exist, the special conditions for which Article 370 was introduced also ceased to exist. The court declared that the abolition of the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir had become inoperative and served no purpose.
The Supreme Court directed the Election Commission to take steps to conduct an election for the legislative assembly and ordered that statehood should be restored to Jammu and Kashmir.
