SC Begins Hearing Pleas Challenging Abrogation of Article 370 in J&K

NEW DELHI:
A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court on Wednesday began hearing a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union territories.

While the petitions are being heard in the court, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said, “We are hopeful of getting justice. We are here on behalf of the people of J&K with the hope that we can prove that what happened on August 5, 2019, was unconstitutional and illegal.”

On July 11, the bench fixed July 27 as the deadline for filing written submissions and convenience compilations by different parties. The hearing will be held on a day-to-day basis – except on Mondays and Fridays which are days for hearing miscellaneous matters in the apex court. A convenience note gives the court a snapshot of the entire case to assist it in quickly appreciating the facts.

It had said the Centre’s affidavit with regard to the conditions prevailing in Jammu and Kashmir after the August 5, 2019 notification repealing Article 370 will have no bearing on the constitutional issue to be adjudicated by the five-judge bench. On that day the Centre had stripped the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir of its special status and bifurcated it into two union territories.

Several petitions challenging the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which split the erstwhile state into two union territories – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh- were referred to a Constitution bench in 2019.