New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said that the “ground realities” in Jammu and Kashmir must be weighed before restoring its statehood.
Hearing a petition seeking enforcement of the court’s December 2023 order to restore statehood promptly after the September-October 2024 Assembly election, a bench led by Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, with Justice K Vinod Chandran, stressed that “incidents like Pahalgam” cannot be ignored.
“You have to take into consideration the ground realities… Remember what happened in Pahalgam,” the court told Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the petitioners.
The top court also sought a response from the Centre on a plea within eight weeks.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta questioned the timing of the petition and wondered whether their intent was to “muddy the waters” in that part of the country. “We assured statehood after elections. There is a peculiar position of this part of our country. I don’t know why this issue this agitated now. This particular State is not the correct State to muddy the water. I will still seek instructions. 8 weeks may be given,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court.
J&K was split into two union territories in August 2019 after Article 370 was revoked, with the government promising statehood restoration at an “appropriate time” but without a fixed timeline.
The petition, filed last year by academic Zahoor Ahmad Bhat and activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik, sought directions to restore statehood within two months. It contended that keeping J&K as a Union Territory for nearly five years has undermined its democratic framework, led to significant developmental setbacks, and violated citizens’ rights. he plea further argued that the delay contravenes the Supreme Court’s prior mandate to restore statehood promptly, particularly following the announcement of assembly election results on October 8, 2024.