The SC on Thursday heard a plea seeking the restoration of J&K’s statehood. In their petition, Zahoor Ahmed Bhat and Khurshid Ahmad Malik argued that the lack of statehood is limiting the rights of citizens. In response, the court said that the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir cannot be ignored while talking about the Pahalgam attack, “You can’t ignore what happened in Pahalgam,” the court said.
SC Hears Plea To Restore J&K Statehood
A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran heard the petition of college teacher Zahoor Ahmed Bhat and activist Khurshid Ahmad Malik seeking restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. In their petition, the two raised their concern, stating that the lack of statehood is having a negative impact on citizens.
In response to the plea, the Solicitor General (SG) argued that J&K is in a “peculiar position”. He continued that the place is not “the correct State to muddy the water.” He then asked the court for 8 weeks of time to seek instructions on the issue.
In their statement, the CJI told Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, the representative for the petitioners, “You can’t ignore what happened in Pahalgam,” referencing the terror attack that took place near Pahalgam and claimed 26 lives.
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Petitioners’ Point Centre’s Delay in Decision Making
In his argument, Sankaranarayanan raised the point that during the hearing in 2023, the court had upheld its decision to uphold the abrogation of Article 370 on the promise that statehood would be granted to J&K post elections.
“The judgment had trusted the government to grant Statehood. Restoration of Statehood was to be done after elections (in J&K). It has been 21 months since that judgment…,” Sankaranarayanan said.
The SG had also gone on record to state that the UT status for J&K was temporary, but no development efforts to restore its status were seen from the centre.
Currently, a National Conference–Congress coalition governs the territory of J&K with Omar Abdullah serving as the Chief Minister.
What difference does J&K’s Lack of Statehood Make?
In their earlier petitions, the two had argued that holding elections in J&K without granting it statehood would violate the principle of federalism, a core part of India’s constitution. This application was filed during the elections last year.
As of now, the court has adjourned the matter for 8 weeks, giving the SG time to seek instructions and form arguments.
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