Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi: The Supreme Court announced on Thursday that it would consider a plea requesting a time-bound restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the petitioners, urged a bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud, alongside Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, to give the matter priority for an urgent hearing.
The advocate argued, “There is a Miscellaneous Application regarding the restoration of statehood. It was noted in last year’s judgment that the process should be time-bound.” Responding to this, CJI Chandrachud assured, “I will deal with it.”
The fresh plea was filed by Zahoor Ahmad Bhat, an academician, and socio-political activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik from Jammu and Kashmir. They seek adherence to the Supreme Court’s earlier directive to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir within a reasonable timeframe.
In December 2023, the Supreme Court had upheld the central government’s 2019 decision to revoke Article 370, which had granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir. However, the court had emphasized that statehood must be restored “at the earliest.” The judgment also directed that assembly elections be held by September 2024.
Recently, assembly elections were held in Jammu and Kashmir for the first time since the abrogation of Article 370, resulting in a victory for the National Conference-Congress alliance. Following the election results, NC vice president Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the first chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir since the union territory was formed.
