'Incidents like Pahalgam can't be ignored': Supreme Court hears pleas seeking restoration of J&K’s statehood; seeks Centre's response

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday said the “ground situation” in Jammu and Kashmir must be considered before restoring its statehood, noting that “incidents like Pahalgam” cannot be ignored.A bench led by Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, with Justice K Vinod Chandran, asked the Centre to respond to a plea seeking J&K’s statehood within eight weeks. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that steps are being taken but there are “peculiar situations” in the region.Mehta pointed out that assembly elections were held as promised to the Constitution Bench that had upheld the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories.

He added, “This is not the time for petitioners to muddy the waters.”The petition, filed last year by academician Zahoor Ahmad Bhat and socio-political activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik, seeks directions to restore statehood within two months. It argues that keeping J&K as a Union Territory for nearly five years has weakened its democratic setup, caused “grave losses” to development, and hurt the rights of its citizens.

The plea also says the delay violates the Supreme Court’s earlier directions to restore statehood “at the earliest and as soon as possible,” especially since assembly election results were declared on October 8, 2024.In its December 2023 verdict, the Supreme Court ruled that Article 370, which gave special status to J&K, was only a temporary provision. It held that the President had the power to revoke it after the state’s Constituent Assembly ceased to exist in 1957.