Article 370 Verdict: Supreme Court Directs ECI to Conduct Polls in J&K by September 2024

The Supreme Court in a unanimous decision on Monday upheld the validity of the scrapping of the controversial Article 370 and directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to hold Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024.

Delivering verdict in the highly anticipated case, Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud said that the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir should also be restored soon since Article 370 is a temporary measure for the union territory.

“We direct that steps shall be taken so that elections are held in the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir by September 2024 and statehood shall be restored as soon as possible,” CJI Chandrachud said reading judgment in the case related to Article 370.

SC Orders Restoration of Statehood for J&K

Upholding the government’s decision to abrogate the provisions of Article 370, the Supreme Court ordered that steps should be taken to restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest.

The five-judge bench headed by CJI Chandrachud also upheld the validity of the decision to carve out the union territory of Ladakh in August 2019.

Judgment Read Out by CJI Chandrachud | Top Points

• The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the validity of the scrapping of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. “We don’t find that President’s exercise to abrogate Article 370 was malafide. We cannot sit in appeal over the decision of the President of India. The President seeking concurrence of the central government before the abrogation isn’t arbitrary.”
• The court stated that Article 370 is a temporary provision. “Article 370 was an interim arrangement due to war conditions in the state.”
• “The State of Jammu and Kashmir didn’t attain independent sovereignty when it merged in India. J&K has no internal sovereignty which is distinguishable from other states. J&K surrendered its sovereignty while merging with India. The J&K Constitution was only to further its relation with India,” CJI said while reading the judgment.
• The apex court also upheld the validity of the decision to carve out the union territory of Ladakh from Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019.
• The Supreme Court refused to rule on the validity of the Presidential rule imposed in Jammu and Kashmir in December 2018 as it was not specifically challenged by the petitioners.

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