Supreme Court Gives Centre Four Weeks to Respond on J&K Statehood Petitions
New Delhi, Oct 10, KNT: The Supreme Court on Friday granted the Central Government four weeks’ time to file its response to petitions seeking the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
A bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud was hearing a batch of pleas challenging the continued status of J&K as a Union Territory. During the proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court that the Union and the J&K administration are in consultation regarding the issue.
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Senior Advocates Gopal Sankaranarayanan, Menaka Guruswamy, and others contended that the conversion of a full-fledged state into a Union Territory strikes at the very foundation of India’s federal structure. They cautioned that such a precedent could have grave implications for other states in the future.
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Advocate Menaka Guruswamy reminded the court that the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly had passed a resolution last year, urging the Centre to restore statehood to the region.
The Solicitor General, however, argued that “substantial development” has taken place in J&K in recent years and that “most people now consider the Government of India as their own.”
After hearing the submissions, the Supreme Court recorded the Centre’s assurance and scheduled the matter for further hearing after four weeks. [KNT]
