Introduction
This article will be throwing light upon the meaning of Article 370 and why it provided special status to Jammu & Kashmir. Also, I will also be dealing as to why Article 370 got scrapped.
Article 370: History
Jammu and Kashmir likewise got Independence from the British rule in 1947. Be that as it may, in contrast to other princely states, Kashmir was not yet ready for getting included. It had three alternatives to choose from – To stay a free nation; to join Dominion of India; or to join Dominion of Pakistan.
Raja Hari Singh, the then ruler of Jammu & Kashmir chose not to join the Indian association and remain as an autonomous state. On October 20, 1947, Pakistan-backed “Azad Kashmir Army” attacked and reallocated a piece of Kashmir district, today known as Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Considering the falling apart circumstance of Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh looked for India’s assistance. This necessitated him to sign the “Instruments of Accession” (IoA) with India.
Under the Instruments of Accession, Jammu and Kashmir gave up three subjects – Defense, Foreign issues, and Communications. So as to bring the provisions vigorously, Article 370 was fused in the Constitution of India. Provisions of article 370 came into power from 17 November 1952.
The provision was drafted in 1947 by Sheikh Abdullah, who had by then been elected Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir by Maharaja Hari Singh and Jawahar Lal Nehru. Sheikh Abdullah had contended that Article 370 ought not to be put under temporary provisions of the Constitution. He needed ‘iron clad independence’ for the state, which Center didn’t consent to.
What are the Provisions of Article 370
There are certain provisions of Article 370 which gave a special status to Jammu & Kashmir. The understanding implied that Jammu and Kashmir is a fundamental piece of India yet the state had extraordinary provisions. Article 370 guaranteed that individuals of J&K would draft their own constitution through their own constituent Assembly.
With the exception of defence, foreign affairs, and communication, Parliament needed the State government’s simultaneousness for applying every single other law to J&K. As such, the provisions of the Constitution which were pertinent to different states were not material to the state.
The Center had no capability to pronounce the financial crisis under Article 360 in the state. Indian citizens from different states weren’t allowed to buy land or property in Jammu and Kashmir. It had the power to announce an emergency in the state just if there arose an occurrence of war or external aggression. The Union government can in this way not proclaim emergency on grounds of internal disturbance or imminent peril except if it was made at the solicitation or with the simultaneousness of the state government. In addition, no Indian was permitted double citizenship however people of Jammu and Kashmir had Indian and Kashmiri citizenship.
What is Article 35A?
Article 35A is a provision referenced in the Indian Constitution, which gives Jammu and Kashmir Legislature the opportunity to decide whom all are ‘permanent residents’ of the State and award them unique rights and benefits in the public sector employment, obtaining of property, scholarships, and other public aid and welfare. The provision commands that no act of the legislature coming under it very well may be tested for disregarding the Constitution or some other law that must be adhered to.
So Article 35A was added to the Constitution as a declaration of the special thought the Indian government concurred to the ‘permanent residents’ of Jammu and Kashmir.
The scrapping of Article 370
On 5th August 2019, the Modi-led government constrained a repudiation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution that had up to this point gave an extraordinary constitutional status to the involved territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The revocation of Article 370 came as a surprise to the majority of Indians. The government also proposed the division of the State into two Union Territories- Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh- an intense and broad choice that looks to redraw the map and eventual fate of a region at the centre of an extended militancy development. Union home minister Amit Shah declared this decision in the Rajya Sabha, which endorsed both the resolution and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill.
Changes after the revocation of Article 370
Now, with the scrapping of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir will only stick to the Constitution of India, much like the rest of the country. Prior to this amendment, Jammu and Kashmir was the only state in the nation with its different constitution according to the provisions referenced in Article 370, a ‘temporary provision’ that awards extraordinary independent status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Also, with the revocation of Article 370(and hence, Article 35A), people who did not belong to Jammu and Kashmir, or the people from outside the said State will now be able to buy property in Jammu and Kashmir and can settle there too. Prior, Article 35A, which depends on Article 370, engaged the J&K assembly to characterize the state’s ‘permanent residents’ and award them unique rights and benefits.
Not only this, but prior law and order were also heavily influenced by the State Government. Presently, following the bifurcation of the state into two union territories J&K and Ladakh, the law and order apparatus should be rebuilt. The government can structure the power-sharing model on lines similar to that of either Delhi or Puducherry, both being union territories. In Delhi, law and order are heavily influenced by the Union Government, while in Puducherry, lawfulness is a state subject.
Now, the laws made by the Centre will automatically be applied to the State and no longer, the approval of the State Legislature will be needed to draft and enforce the laws.
Reasons for the revocation of Article 370
- Corruption: Article 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution, which gave special status to the Jammu and Kashmir, did not permit all laws of India to be applicable to the State. The government claimed that this has hindered and interfered with the development and had given a chance to the corruption to grow.
- Terrorism: Another reason which led the government to revoke Article 370 was terrorism. The most noticeably awful failure of the Jammu and Kashmir leaders and administration was in containing terrorism. They ought to have tried sincerely to keep terrorism under check. The government told that because of the failure of the successive State Government to contain terrorism, 41,849 people faced violent deaths since 1989.
- Unemployment Rate: The employment rate of Jammu and Kashmir, as compared to other states, is 5.3 percent, out of the national average of 6.1 percent. Had Jammu and Kashmir delivered better outcomes in keeping a check on terrorism, advancing tourism, finishing discrimination against women, checked corruption, there was no compelling reason to scrape Article 370.
As said, these are some reasons due to which it became important and necessary to revoke Article 370.
Conclusion
In spite of the accomplishments of successive Jammu and Kashmir governments, the Narendra Modi Government did not find it intense and hard to persuade a large number of other parties to support the revocation in the Parliament.
This blog is written by Rashi Srivastava, Amity University.
Some of her blogs-
- RIGHT TO DIE: FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT?
- AN ANALYSIS OF NATIONAL IPR POLICY
- COPYRIGHT VS DESIGN
- DUAL CITIZENSHIP IN INDIA
- CHARGE UNDER CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
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