NEW DELHI: A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, on Tuesday scheduled day-to-day hearings in the abrogation of Article 370 case from August 2.
The apex court will hear 23 writ petitions challenging the Union government‘s decision made on August 5, 2019, to revoke the special status granted under Article 370 to Jammu & Kashmir, bifurcating the state into two Union Territories – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
A five-judge Constitution bench had in March 2020 declined to refer to a larger seven-judge bench a batch of petitions challenging the Constitutional validity of the Centre’s decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370. The five-judge bench said there were no reasons to refer the matter to a larger bench. A number of petitions were filed by private individuals, lawyers, activists and politicians and political parties, challenging the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
The CJI-led bench on Tuesday said all addition to existing pleadings, filed during hearing before the court that declined reference of the issue to 7-J bench, would have to be done by July 27 and firmly told counsel that records would be frozen on July 27.
Names of two petitioners – IAS officer Shah Faesal and human rights activist Shehla Rashid – who sought deletion of their names from the court records in this issue, were deleted. With a petitioner-in-person complaining that though he had filed the PIL first on this issue, his name was pushed way down in the list of cases, the CJI-led bench on SG’s suggestion renamed the case as “In re: Article 370 of the Constitution”.
‘Abrogation of Article 370 brought normalcy after 3 decades of turmoil’
The Central government had on Monday justified its decision to abrogate Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, arguing that after the changes, instances of street violence, which were instigated and coordinated by terrorists and secessionist networks, have become a thing of the past. “Since 2019, when Article 370 was abrogated, the entire region has witnessed an unprecedented era of peace, progress and prosperity,” the Centre said on on Monday.
“After the abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, life has returned to normalcy after three decades of turmoil,” the Centre told the Supreme Court. “Schools, colleges and universities are functioning without any strikes during the last three years … The earlier practice of strikes and bandhs is a thing of the past. Participation in sporting activities is phenomenal having reached 60 lakhs in 2022-23. These facts clearly prove the positive impact of the constitutional changes effected in 2019,” the Centre said in its affidavit.
The apex court will hear 23 writ petitions challenging the Union government‘s decision made on August 5, 2019, to revoke the special status granted under Article 370 to Jammu & Kashmir, bifurcating the state into two Union Territories – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
A five-judge Constitution bench had in March 2020 declined to refer to a larger seven-judge bench a batch of petitions challenging the Constitutional validity of the Centre’s decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370. The five-judge bench said there were no reasons to refer the matter to a larger bench. A number of petitions were filed by private individuals, lawyers, activists and politicians and political parties, challenging the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
The CJI-led bench on Tuesday said all addition to existing pleadings, filed during hearing before the court that declined reference of the issue to 7-J bench, would have to be done by July 27 and firmly told counsel that records would be frozen on July 27.
Names of two petitioners – IAS officer Shah Faesal and human rights activist Shehla Rashid – who sought deletion of their names from the court records in this issue, were deleted. With a petitioner-in-person complaining that though he had filed the PIL first on this issue, his name was pushed way down in the list of cases, the CJI-led bench on SG’s suggestion renamed the case as “In re: Article 370 of the Constitution”.
‘Abrogation of Article 370 brought normalcy after 3 decades of turmoil’
The Central government had on Monday justified its decision to abrogate Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, arguing that after the changes, instances of street violence, which were instigated and coordinated by terrorists and secessionist networks, have become a thing of the past. “Since 2019, when Article 370 was abrogated, the entire region has witnessed an unprecedented era of peace, progress and prosperity,” the Centre said on on Monday.
“After the abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, life has returned to normalcy after three decades of turmoil,” the Centre told the Supreme Court. “Schools, colleges and universities are functioning without any strikes during the last three years … The earlier practice of strikes and bandhs is a thing of the past. Participation in sporting activities is phenomenal having reached 60 lakhs in 2022-23. These facts clearly prove the positive impact of the constitutional changes effected in 2019,” the Centre said in its affidavit.