"You cannot ignore what happened in Pahalgam": Supreme Court on the plea filed seeking restoration of statehood of JK

New Delhi [India], August 14 (ANI): The Supreme Court of India, on Thursday, heard a plea seeking directions to the Centre for the restoration of statehood to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The court noted that the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir cannot be ignored while granting statehood and said that the events in Pahalgam cannot be overlooked.
Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, while listening to the plea, said, "You cannot ignore what happened in Pahalgam."
Meanwhile, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, requested eight weeks to obtain government instructions on the issue, noting that the government had assured statehood after elections, but a peculiar situation exists.
Congress MLA and petitioner for J&K statehood in SC, Irfan Hafeez Lone, commented on the recent development and noted, " We are neither going to stop, bow down, or get tired. Whenever the BJP is afraid, they send the police forward. This is Gandhi's country. We will continue our fight."
Jammu and Kashmir Congress President also shared his remarks, stating that the Supreme Court directed the Centre to conduct elections in the Union Territory and restore statehood, out of which only one direction has been fulfilled.
Tariq Hamid Karra, while talking to ANI, said, "The Supreme Court is currently following a procedure in a case related to the abrogation of Article 370, where it previously directed the government to hold elections and restore statehood in the region at the earliest. The court has sought a response from the government on why statehood has not yet been restored, in line with its earlier directives."
He commented on the statement made by the CJI on the Pahalgam attack and said that the government has glorified the boost in tourism in Kashmir during the G20 meeting.
He stated, "Elections have historically been held in Jammu and Kashmir even during periods of militancy, managed successfully by state governments. The government's response will clarify the situation."
He also noted that the fight for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir statehood is on the legal and political front and said, "Meanwhile, political movements, including a hunger strike by Congress and a petition filed by Omar Abdullah, are ongoing separately from the legal battle."
Earlier, a plea was filed by college teacher Zahoor Ahmed Bhat and activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik, where the applications stated that despite the assurance given by the Solicitor General that Jammu and Kashmir's statehood will be restored, the Union has not taken any steps in that regard in the years after the judgment in the Article 370 case.
The application was filed through advocate Soyaib Qureshi in the disposed of case of abrogation of Article 370, in which the Supreme Court upheld the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
"The applicants, being the conscious citizens of Jammu and Kashmir are aggrieved that, even after passing of 10 months of the order dated August 11, 2023, till date no steps have been taken to restore the status of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir as a state which is gravely affecting the rights of the inhabitants of Jammu and Kashmir and also violating the basic structure of federalism; and it is for that reason that the applicants have preferred the present application to seek appropriate directions to the Union of India for restoration of the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir in a time-bound manner within a period of two months," stated the application.
"If directions to restore the status of the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir are not passed at the earliest by this court, it would lead to grave harm being caused to the federal structure of the country," it added.
Referring to the polls held in Jammu and Kashmir, the application stated that the formation of the Legislative Assembly before the restoration of statehood would violate the idea of federalism, which forms part of the basic structure of the Constitution of India.
Since the assembly elections were conducted peacefully, there would be no security concerns in case the apex court passed a direction to restore statehood to the Union Territory within a time-bound period, it submitted.
It was also contended that the conversion of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories has resulted in Jammu and Kashmir being given a lesser form of elected democratic government, which will soon be formed once the results of the Legislative Assembly are declared.
It added, "If the status of statehood is not restored to Jammu and Kashmir in a time-bound manner, grave prejudice would be caused to the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir, also leading to the violation of their fundamental rights and also gravely affecting the democratic structure of Jammu and Kashmir and its territorial integrity."
For Jammu and Kashmir, which has always had a federal relationship with the Union of India, it is of utmost importance that the status of statehood is restored "so that they can enjoy an autonomy in their identity and also play an important part in the overall development of the Country", the application added.
On December 11, 2023, a five-judge Constitution bench had unanimously upheld the validity of the Union government's 2019 decision to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution, which conferred the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, while pointing out that Article 370 is a "temporary provision".
The top court had taken into note Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's submission that the Statehood of Jammu and Kashmir will be restored, except for the Union Territory of Ladakh.
It had directed that steps shall be taken by the Election Commission of India to conduct elections to the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024. (ANI)