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Synopsis

In its verdict upholding the abrogation of Article 370, Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission of India to conduct elections to the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir constituted under Section 14 of the Reorganisation Act by 30 September 2024.

"Restoration of statehood shall take place at the earliest and as soon as possible", the Court has further ordered.

While directing so, court relied on the Solicitor General statement that the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir will be restored (except for the carving out of the Union Territory of Ladakh).

In view of the statement, we do not find it necessary to determine whether the reorganisation of the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir is permissible under Article 3, Supreme Court has further observed.

In the 476-page judgment, the Constitution Bench has also upheld the validity of the decision to carve out the Union Territory of Ladakh in view of Article 3(a) read with Explanation I which permits forming a Union Territory by separation of a territory from any State.

"This Court is alive to the security concerns in the territory. Direct elections to the Legislative Assemblies which is one of the paramount features of representative democracy in India cannot be put on hold until statehood is restored", the five-judge Constitution Bench has said.

Furthermore, the question of whether Parliament can extinguish the character of statehood by converting a State into one or more Union Territories in exercise of power under Article 3 has been left open, which in an appropriate case, the Supreme Court has said that it would construe the scope of powers under Article 3 in light of the historical context for the creation of federating units, and its impact on the principles of federalism and representative democracy.

Notably, the court has also recommended the setting up of a commission to investigate and report on the violation of human rights in Jammu & Kashmir since the 1980s.

In a historic verdict, the Supreme Court of India today upheld the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India which accorded "special status" to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Notably, three concurring judgments have been authored.

Court has held Article 370 to be a temporary provision enacted introduced to serve a transitional purpose considering the war conditions in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. A textual reading of the article also indicates that it is a temporary provision, CJI read from his judgment.

A five judge Constitution bench comprising of CJI DY Chandrachud, Justices SK Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai and Surya Kant had reserved verdict on September 5, 2023. Court had begun hearing the case on July 11. 

Case Title: IN Re: ARTICLE 370 OF THE CONSTITUTION