New Delhi: The Supreme Court will hear a plea on August 8 seeking directions to the Union Government to restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir.
Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, noting it was listed for hearing on August 8 and requested it not be removed. The CJI agreed to the request.
The hearing coincides with the sixth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, which revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.
The application has been filed as a Miscellaneous Application in the already disposed matter titled In Re: Article 370 of the Constitution, in which the Court had upheld the abrogation. However, the judgment did not examine the constitutionality of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 — the legislation that downgraded the state into a Union Territory — as the Solicitor General had assured the Court that statehood would be restored.
The Court had noted, “Restoration of statehood shall take place at the earliest and as soon as possible,” but did not specify a timeline.
The fresh application, filed by college teacher Zahoor Ahmed Bhat and activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik, argues that no steps have been taken by the Union Government in the eleven months since the Article 370 judgment, despite the assurance.
The petitioners contend that the continued delay violates the basic structure of the Constitution, particularly the principle of federalism. “Non-restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood in a time-bound manner undermines the idea of federalism,” they stated.
They also noted that the recent peaceful conduct of Assembly elections in the region proves there are no security or law and order concerns preventing the return to statehood. “There is no impediment such as violence or unrest that would hinder the restoration of statehood, as assured by the Union in these proceedings,” the application added.
