The Supreme Court of India has pressed the Centre for a definitive timeframe for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, while the court continues to hear petitions challenging the scrapping of Article 370. During the proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta has been directed to provide instructions on this matter following the lunch break.
The Court sought clarity on whether Clause (a) of Article 370 contemplates a scenario where an entire state can be transformed into a Union Territory (UT). In light of this, the bench remarked, "Does clause (a) contemplate a situation where the entire territory of a state can be turned into a UT? So wherever you read State, you read UT. Let's read clause (1) in that light."
SG Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, argued that Article 370(1) permits the Prime Minister and Chief Minister of a state to make changes, alterations, or choose not to apply provisions. He cited the example of Article 35A, which allowed the creation of a constitutional provision solely for Jammu and Kashmir. Mehta emphasized that this discretion aims to prevent similar changes in the future.
"I will show that that is not of a permanent nature and we want this to become a state again... I will submit the Article 370," he added.
This development comes after Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud's comments on Monday that Article 35A, which was scrapped in 2019, 'took away fundamental rights'. The CJI's observations were made during the hearing of petitions challenging the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status.
The hearing, led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, and Surya Kant, continues for the eleventh day. The bench is addressing petitions contesting the Centre's decision to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir by diluting Article 370 and Article 35A.
In 2019, Union Home Minister Amit Shah proposed the scrapping of Article 370 and Article 35A. Subsequently, President Ram Nath Kovind issued an order, the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019, making the provisions of the Indian Constitution applicable to the region. This move aimed to align Jammu and Kashmir with other states of India.
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