Article 370 of the Constitution, which bestowed special status on the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, was a "temporary provision", the Supreme Court ruled on Monday. In a landmark verdict, the court unanimously upheld the Centre's August 5, 2019 decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370, while directing restoration of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest and holding of the assembly elections by September 30, 2024.
The Centre in 2019 scrapped the special status and split the state into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
The verdict from a five-judge Constitution bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud comes in response to a slew of petitions challenging the Centre's move four years ago. After a 16-day-long hearing, the Supreme Court reserved its judgment on September 5.
The petitioners argued that Article 370 cannot be scrapped unilaterally by the Centre, since the powers of the Constituent Assembly were vested in the Jammu and Kashmir legislature after it was dissolved in 1957.
