Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 11: Most of the political parties in Jammu and Kashmir welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision on Tuesday to hear a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution on a day-to-day basis.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would begin hearing petitions challenging the changes in Article 370 and downgrading of Jammu & Kashmir state into two Union Territories on August 2 and then proceed on a day-to-day basis.
Earlier on Monday, the Centre told the SC in its affidavit that they have “brought unprecedented development, progress, security and stability to the region, which was often missing during the old Article 370 regime” and that this is “testament to the fact that Parliamentary wisdom…” was “exercised prudently.”
The Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said the affidavit on the present status of Jammu and Kashmir would not have any bearing on the constitutional issues raised in the petitions “and shall not be relied upon for that purpose.” The petitions, involving important legal and constitutional questions would be taken up by a Bench led by CJI Chandrachud and also comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, and Surya Kant.
There are over 20 petitioners challenging the abrogation of article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir including National Conference Lok Sabha MPs Mohammad Akbar Lone and Hasnain Masood, Jammu and Kashmir Peoples’ Conference, artist Inder Salim, journalist Satish Jacob and Radha Kumar, retired air vice marshal Kapil Kak, retired major general Ashok Kumar Mehta, former union home secretary Gopal Pillai, a human rights organisation People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Jammu and Kashmir Bar Association and others.
The court, however, allowed IAS officer Shah Faesal and former student leader Shehla Rashid Shora to withdraw their petitions challenging article 370 and directed that their names be deleted from the list of petitioners.
Mr Faesal first hit headlines in 2009 by topping the civil services entrance exam UPSC – the first Kashmiri to do so. Following several government postings, he resigned from service in 2019 to protest “unabated killings in Kashmir.” In a Facebook post, he accused the centre of marginalising Indian Muslims and subverting public institutions. He then launched a political party, Jammu & Kashmir Peoples’ Movement.
Shehla Rashid, who has served as vice-president of the students’ union at Jawaharlal Nehru University, rose to prominence during the agitation demanding the release of several student leaders, including Kanhaiya Kumar and Umar Khalid, arrested on charges of sedition in 2016. Kumar is now a Congress leader. Umar Khalid is in jail in connection with a Delhi riots case. Shehla Rashid later joined Shah Faesal’s party.
Faesal was among the Kashmir leaders detained after the centre scrapped Article 370. In August 2020, the Jammu & Kashmir Peoples’ Movement announced that Faesal was relieved as a party member on his request. Shehla Rashid had also left the party. Last year, Faesal applied for reinstatement in government service and moved to withdraw his resignation. His application was accepted.
In a recent Twitter post, Mr Faesal said Article 370 is now a “thing of the past.” “370, for many Kashmiris like me, is a thing of the past. Jhelum and Ganga have merged in the great Indian Ocean for good. There is no going back. There is only marching forward,” he said.
Commenting on Supreme Court’s decision to start day-to-day hearing, the former chief minister Farooq Abdullah said, “It took four years for the case to get to the Supreme Court. It shows how strong our case is. Had it been weak, believe me, they [the Centre] would have started the hearing within weeks. It took so long because the Constitution was blown to pieces on August 5, 2019.”
Abdullah said the abrogation of Article 370 may be linked to tourism and G20 events, but the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was wrong. “You may package it as you may wish. Link it to tourism or G20 as much as you like, but legally and constitutionally, whatever happened with Jammu and Kashmir was wrong,” he added.
The former Union Minister also claimed that the government’s case was weak. “The government did not even try to get it listed. There are ways. If the government was interested, it could have requested the Supreme Court for an early hearing. Had its case been strong, it would have requested the chief justice for a hearing. It did not.”
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chief Mehbooba Mufti said the top court’s decision not to rely on the Centre’s affidavit on the abrogation of Article 370 vindicated her stand that the BJP-led Union government’s move did not have a logical explanation. Ms Mufti, however, said there were genuine apprehensions regarding why the apex court had taken up the petitions with such alacrity after remaining silent for four years.
NC’s chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq said the development instils hope among the people of Jammu and Kashmir. “It is a welcome development that the CJI will hear the petitions on a daily basis from August 2. It instils a lot of hope in the minds and hearts of the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” Sadiq said.
Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader M.Y. Tarigami also welcomed the apex court’s decision. “This is a positive intervention. We welcome it. Though it is late as it has taken four years, nevertheless, it has sent a positive message to the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh,” he said. “We expect that justice will be delivered,” he added.
The Centre had abrogated the provisions of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, and bifurcated the erstwhile State into the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.