A fresh application pushing for the reinstatement of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood is scheduled for hearing by the Supreme Court on Friday August 8 according to Live Law. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan brought up the listing before Chief Justice BR Gavai requesting the matter remain on the docket. The Chief Justice agreed.
The date holds added weight. August 5 2019 marked the day the Centre revoked Article 370 stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its special status and split it into two Union territories.
This latest application is tied to the already concluded constitutional case on Article 370. Though the court had upheld the revocation of special status in its December 2023 ruling it notably did not weigh in on the legality of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act following the government’s promise to restore statehood as soon as possible.
Nearly a year has passed since that commitment and the petitioners Zahoor Ahmed Bhat a college professor and activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik are now urging the court to compel the Centre to act. Represented by Advocate on Record Ejaz Maqbool they argue that despite peaceful elections in the region no concrete steps have been taken.
The timing of this legal move comes alongside political rumblings. The Congress has announced it will mark August 5 as a black day staging a dharna to protest the 2019 downgrade of Jammu and Kashmir’s status.
Meanwhile high level meetings in Delhi including one involving Home Minister Amit Shah NSA Ajit Doval and other top officials have triggered speculation that the Centre may be preparing to act on the issue of statehood restoration. Neither the BJP nor government sources have offered any confirmation but the timing has raised eyebrows.
