Article 370: Supreme Court verdict likely before Dec 15

Samaan Lateef

Srinagar, December 4

The Supreme Court is likely to soon announce its verdict on the contentious case challenging the abrogation of Article 370 and its corollary Article 35-A, which provided special constitutional guarantees to Jammu and Kashmir.

The verdict, expected before December 15, follows a series of hearings by the Constitution Bench, headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai and Surya Kant.

The long pending case challenged the government’s decision to repeal the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370. The case also challenges the J&K Reorganization Act, responsible for bifurcating the state into Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.

The Constitution Bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, had presided over sixteen days of hearing, concluding on September 5. With the impending retirement of Justice SK Kaul on December 25, and December 15 being the last working day before the winter vacation, expectations are high for an expeditious release of the judgment.

“If the verdict is not pronounced by or before the retirement of Justice SK Kaul, the Supreme Court has to reconstitute the Bench and start hearing the case afresh,” a senior Supreme Court counsel told The Tribune. “So, we anticipate a verdict before December 15,” he said.

Commencing on August 2, the hearings witnessed extensive arguments over the course of sixteen days, marking a revival of a case that had remained dormant for over three years.

The petitioners, represented by senior advocates including Kapil Sibal, Manish Tiwari, Gopal Subramanium and others, emphasised the unique historical relationship between J&K and India. They contended that Article 370 had assumed permanence. They challenged the constitutionality of the abrogation.

Contrarily, the Union Government and other respondents argued that the revocation of Article 370 resolved the ‘psychological duality’ in J&K and addressed historic discrimination.

They highlighted the temporary nature of Article 370, emphasising the Constitution makers’ intent for it ‘to die.’ The respondents asserted that the modification of Article 367 was crucial to prevent the permanent entrenchment of Article 370.

There is a hope among the people and political parties in Jammu and Kashmir that Supreme Court will ask the Centre to restore the statehood of J&K immediately and call for Assembly elections while people have given up on the restoration of Article 370.

The case

• Besides scrapping of the special status, the case also challenges the J&K Reorganization Act, responsible for bifurcating the erstwhile state into Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.
• With the retirement of Justice SK Kaul on December 25, and December 15 being the last working day before the winter vacation, expectations are high for an expeditious release of the judgment.

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