SC junks review petition against judgment upholding abrogation of Article 370

SC junks review against Article 370

The Supreme Court on May 1 dismissed a petition seeking review of its judgment upholding abrogation of Article 370 of the constitution of India.

"No case for review under Order XLVII Rule 1 of the Supreme Court Rules 2013. The review petitions are, therefore, dismissed," the order uploaded on May 21 said.

A bench of CJI DY Chandrachud and comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna, B.R. Gavai, Surya Kant and A.S.Bopanna junked review petitions filed by Awami National Conference, Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party among others.

A constitution bench of five judges on December 11 2023, upheld the validity of the Presidential order scrapping Article 370 of the Constitution which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir and the bifurcation of the state, saying it didn’t retain an element of sovereignty after accession to India.

The five-judge bench was led by DY Chandrachud and comprised Justices SK Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai and Surya Kant. The court said the bifurcation of the state into union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh was valid but ordered restoration of J&K’s statehood at the earliest. It also directed the Election Commission to hold polls in J&K by September 30.

The court also refused to rule on the validity of the Presidential rule imposed in Jammu and Kashmir in Dec 2018. CJI Chandrachud noted, "Every decision taken by Union on behalf of State during Presidential rule not open to challenge...this will lead to the administration of state to a standstill."

The constitution bench said that Jammu and Kashmir constituent assembly was never intended to be a permanent and its recommendations were not binding on the President. "When the J&K constituent assembly ceased to exist, the special conditions for which Article 370 was introduced also ceased to exist but the provision had continued due to the situation in the state," the CJI said.

The court said it didn’t decide on the validity of J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019, as the Solicitor General had submitted that J&K’s UT status was temporary and the statehood would be restored. It upheld the move to make Ladakh a union territory.