Abrogation of Article 370 - Impact and Reality

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What is Article 370?

Article 370 of the Indian Constitution used to give special status to the region of Jammu and Kashmir. The article was drafted in Part XXI of the Constitution: Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions. Under this article all the provisions of the constitution which are applicable to other states are not applicable to J&K. For example, till 1965, J&K had a Sadr-e-Riyasat for governor and prime minister in place of chief minister.

This article along with Article 35A defined that the J&K state's resident live under separate set of laws, including those related to citizenship, ownership of property, and fundamental rights, as compared to resident of other Indian states. As a result of this provision, Indian citizens from other states cannot purchase land or property in Jammu and Kashmir.

History of Article 370

In October, 1947, after signing on the Instrument of Accession by the then Maharaja of Kashmir, Hari Singh, three subjects on which Jammu & Kashmir were transferred its power to the government of India.
  1. Foreign Affairs
  2. Defence
  3. Communications
In March 1948, the Maharaja appointed an interim government in the state, with Sheikh Abdullah as prime minister. In July 1949, Sheikh Abdullah and three other colleagues joined the Indian Constituent Assembly and negotiated the special status of J&K, leading to the adoption of Article 370. The controversial provision was drafted by Sheikh Abdullah.

Provisions of Article 370

Parliament needs the Jammu and Kashmir government's approval for applying laws in the state - except in cases of defence, foreign affairs, finance, and communication.

The law of citizenship, ownership of property, and fundamental rights of the residents of Jammu & Kashmir is different from the residents living in rest of India. Under Article 370, citizens from other states cannot buy property in Jammu & Kashmir. Under Article 370, the Centre has no power to declare a financial emergency in the state.

It is important to note that Article 370(1)(c) explicitly mentions that Article 1 of the Indian Constitution applies to Kashmir through Article 370. Article 1 lists the states of the Union. This means that it is Article 370 that binds the state of J&K to the Indian Union. Removing Article 370, which can be done by a Presidential Order, would render the state independent of India, unless new overriding laws are made.

Recent Developments

The government on 05.08.2019 moved a resolution to effectively abolish Article 370, which gives special power to the state of Jammu & Kashmir. The government also introduced a Bill to divide the state into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir (will have legislature like Delhi and Puducherry), Ladakh (will have no legislature like Chandigarh). The Rajya Sabha has passed the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Bill which bifurcate the state into two Union Territories. The Lok Sabha now must pass the Bill, which will then go to the President for his assent. Once the President signs the Bill and the government issues a notification, Jammu and Kashmir will no longer be a state.

What will change after Article 370?

Kashmir will no longer have a separate constitution but will have to abide by the Indian constitution much like any other state. All Indian laws will be automatically applicable to Kashmiris, and people from outside the state will be able to buy property there. There will be no separate flag for the state (which was there earlier).

Ground Reality

The concern is that some will take this as an opportunity to play spoiler and attack troops, attack pilgrims. Extremist terrorists may attack vulnerable targets or attack troops as a way of ramping up tensions, forcing the Indian government to respond militarily, and creating that spiral of violence that they benefit from.

The violence is not carried out by average Kashmiri citizens. The violence is carried out by extremists who are always looking for the right environment in which to cause violence.

The separatists will get a great boost. It gives them a talking point: We’ve been telling you for all this time that the Indian government doesn’t see you as one of them, and doesn’t respect Kashmiri identity.

In amid of this, Indian government has sent an estimated additional 25,000 troops to Kashmir, which is already one of the most militarized areas of the world.

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