Today, on December 11, the Supreme Court delivered its judgement on the Union government’s 2019 initiative to modify Article 370 of the Constitution.
The abrogations concluded the special status previously granted to the former state of Jammu and Kashmir. The court affirmed the validity of the Constitutional order that nullified Article 370.
A Constitution bench received numerous petitions challenging the revocation of Article 370 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which divided the former state into two union territories – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh – in 2019.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud led a five-judge Constitution bench that reserved the verdict on 23 petitions related to the modification of Article 370 on September 5 this year, after conducting 16 days of hearings. The bench also included Justices S K Kaul, Sanjeev Khanna, B R Gavai, and Surya Kant.
CJI DY Chandrachud stated that Jammu and Kashmir lost internal sovereignty upon its accession to India. He mentioned that there was no apparent evidence suggesting that the President’s 2019 orders were dishonest or an improper exercise of power.
Although the court characterized the reorganisation of the former state into Union Territories in 2019 as a temporary measure, it instructed the Centre to work towards reinstating statehood and conducting Legislative Assembly elections.
In the concurring judgement, Justice S.K. Kaul proposed the formation of an unbiased Truth and Reconciliation Commission to examine and document human rights violations by both the State and non-state actors since the 1980s. The Commission is mandated to recommend reconciliation measures within a specified period.
 DY Chandrachud stated that Jammu and Kashmir lost internal sovereignty upon its accession to India.){kind=link}