Was Article 370 abrogation in Jammu and Kashmir unconstitutional? Supreme Court verdict on Monday

The Supreme Court will deliver its verdict on the abrogation of the Article 370 case on Monday, December 11, challenging the Union government’s 2019 decision that revoked the special status given to Jammu and Kashmir.

The judgment will be delivered by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, accompanied by Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, and Surya Kant.

The hearing in the case began on August 2, 2023, and after a heated debate spanning 16 days, the verdict was reserved on September 5, 2023. This historic case had been dormant for over three years, last listed in March 2020.

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Petitioners have termed it an attack on federalism and a constitutional fraud. Represented by senior lawyers including Kapil Sibal, Gopal Subramanium, Rajeev Dhavan, Dushyant Dave, and Gopal Sankaranarayanan, they argued that the Union of India used its parliamentary majority and executive orders to divide a full-fledged State into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Bar and Bench reported.

The crux of the petitioners’ argument highlighted the unique nature of J&K’s relations with India, citing the Instrument of Accession signed by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Maharaja Hari Singh, accepted by then Governor-General Lord Mountbatten. They contended that only three subjects — defence, external affairs, and communications — were ceded to India, while internal sovereignty remained with the Maharaja. They argued that apart from defence and communications, the Maharaja retained the power to legislate on all other matters. While the Union retained the authority to frame laws concerning foreign affairs, and defence matters according to the Instrument of Accession.

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More than 20 petitions were filed challenging the Central government’s 2019 decision to annul Article 370, leading to the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and its subsequent division into two Union Territories.

In March 2020, a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court chose not to refer the petitions to a seven-judge Constitution Bench, despite some petitioners seeking such a reference.

The top court initiated the final hearing on August 2, 2023, and after a comprehensive 16-day hearing, reserved its judgment.

On August 6, 2019, the Government of India revoked the special status granted under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir—a region administered by India and a subject of dispute among India, Pakistan, and China since 1947.