Progress Made So Far: A Situation Analysis of Jammu and Kashmir Pre and Post Removal of Article 370

Abstract

Article 370 of the Indian constitution gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, a region located in the northern part of Indian subcontinent which was administered by India as a state from 1954 to 31 October 2019, conferring it with the power to have a separate constitution, a state flag and autonomy over the internal administration of the state. Article 370 was drafted in Part XXI of the Indian constitution titled "Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions". It stated that the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir would be empowered to recommend the extent to which the Indian constitution would apply to the state. The state assembly could also abrogate the Article 370 altogether, in which case all of Indian Constitution would have applied to the state. After the state constituent assembly was convened, it recommended the provisions of the Indian constitution that should apply to the state, based on which 1954 Presidential Order was issued. Since the state constituent assembly dissolved itself without recommending the abrogation of Article 370, the article was deemed to have become a permanent feature of the Indian Constitution. The net effect was that the Jammu and Kashmir state's residents live under a separate set of laws, including those related to citizenship, ownership of property, and fundamental rights, as compared to residents of other Indian states. As a result of this provision, Indian citizens from other states could not purchase land or property in Jammu & Kashmir. Article 370 of Indian Constitution granted a special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. The article was embedded in the constitution on the demand of Maharaja Hari Singh to protect his subjects from external exploitation. The article gave certain privilege only to the residents of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh while barring others from it. The features of this article were: 1. Immovable property rights lied only with the state subjects guaranteed by 35A. 2. Separate constitution and Flag 3. No central law could be directly implemented in J&K. 4. Employment opportunities in state were reserved for domiciles only. 5. It also has a condition attached that it can be struck down but not without plebiscite. On 5 August 2019, the Government of India issued a Presidential Order superseding the 1954 order, and making all the provisions of the Indian constitution applicable to Jammu and Kashmir. The order was based on the resolution passed in both houses of India's parliament with two-thirds majority. A further order on 6 August made all the clauses of Article 370 except clause 1 to be inoperative.