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The debate and concern regarding the Article 370 continues to be vivid in Indian polity and in global space especially in case of Jammu and Kashmir. The status and applicability of Article 370 have been understood by tracing its historical roots, political changes in the present year in India, the different postures adopted by the main political parties and how Pakistan has entered the scene adding more flare to the tense relation between two nations.
Article 370 of Indian
Constitution had been a constitutional provision which gave limited autonomy to
the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Passed in 1949, it gave the state the power of
functioning with a separate constitution, separate flag, and self-governing
system on all the issues other than defense, foreign relations, revenues, and
posts. The provision was introduced to cater the situation in which Jammu and
Kashmir acceded to India, in 1947, with the dawn of partition of British India
into India and Pakistan.
Special provisions of
the state under Article 370 was surrounded by controversy from the beginning of
time with pros and cons. The fans of the article found it as very essential in
shaping the social-cultural fabric of the region, given the fact that most of
its people are Muslims. Critics said it embedded a legal and political
structural divide between the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and rest of
country thereby existing road map failed to foster integration.
Revocation of Article 370
Autumn of 2019
especially the 5th of August will be recorded in the history of Indian
administration since Narendra Modi’s administration abrogated article 370 thus
denying the Jammu and Kashmir a special status. This was done under an
executive presidential order together with the approval of the Indian
Parliament through a resolution. Apart from the revocation, the state of Jammu
and Kashmir was been divided into two union territories, Jammu & Kashmir,
and Ladakh by passing the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019. The Modi
government defended it with the claims that Article 370 continued to encourage
separatism, terrorism, and pauperism in the region. The government also said
the article continued to block complete integration of Jammu and Kashmir with
India.
The scrapping of
article 370 generated different reactions coming from inside and outside India.
Holding that the people of Jammu and Kashmir had never been consulted on the
lapse as the state was under Presidents Rule critics claimed that it was
anti-democratic. In addition to this, there was a security lockdown as well as
a closure of all means of communication in the region, a move that received
criticism from across the world.
Other Reactions at Home and Congress-BJP Strained Relations
The scrapping of
article 370 was an immediate central issue between India’s ruling Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) and Indian National Congress (INC). Both the BJP, headed by
Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah saw the revocation as a process
towards the complete integration of the Jammu and Kashmir into India. Some of
the people said that putting into operation of this measure would lead to
development of the region, would put an end to terrorism and would apply all
Indian laws without differentiation in the region for affirmative equity.
However the Congress and other opposition parties opposed
the move vehemently stating that it was unconstitutional and was an attempt to
destroy the democracy of the country. Politicians such as Rahul Gandhi, former
CMs of J&K Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti termed the decision as
‘undemocratic’. Congress has always held the view that though Article 370 could
be amended or abrogated but it should have been done with the assistance of the
people of the state of Jammu and Kashmir through their representatives.
More recently, the
Congress party reaffirmed it stand about Article 370 with its leadership
signally that they might review the decision of abrogating Article 370 if they
are voted to power. This put political leaders on the extremes of the spectrum
warning about what BJP termed as Congress ‘arming’ Pakistan on the matter.
The Increasing Tensions and Pakistan’s Part
The Government of
Pakistan has always taken keen interest as to the change in the status of Jammu
and Kashmir owing to the unresolved issue of Kashmir between Pakistan and
India. Pakistan’s response to the revocation of that article in 2019 was rather
severe and unfavourable. The then Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Imran Khan, termed
it an ‘illegal annexation’ and expressed that he would take it up in
international forums including in United Nations.
Pakistani returned
back to the controversy in 2024 during a political event in which Pakistani
Minister Khawaja Asif voiced his support for Congress party stand on the
reinstatement of Article 370. This prompted the Indian Raj BJP and the Congress
party into a twitter fight. Congress and its leaders were again in the BJP
crosshair; BJP spokes person Shehzad Poonawalla was the latest one to accuse
and politicize the Congress party’s loyalty to the Pakistani viewpoint.
Even, the Pakistan
has entered into the Article 370 debate and this further aggravated the
relations between the two nuclear powered neighbors. Pakistan supporting
Congress’s stand has now provided BJP an electoral stick to beat the opposition
with, accusing it of being pro-Pakistan.
International and Legal Ramifications
Globally, there has
been different reactions to the abolishment of article 370. While some nations
such as the United States and Russia seem to have relied on the perception that
India has no business with the Kashmir issue, nations like China and Turkey
have disapproved the move. The UN on several occasions urged India and Pakistan
to sort out the issue of Kashmir diplomatically but no such a solution has been
come closer.
In terms of law
Article 370 has been abrogated and challenged in the Supreme Court of India and
there are many pending petitions that exist. The petitioners’ point out that
before Article 370 could be repealed, it could only be done by an act of the
Constituent Assembly of the State of Jammu and Kashmir which was dissolved in
1957. In response to this, the government, however, affirms that the article
was only for sometime, thus the revocation was legal in order to better the
region and for security.
Some of the major implications which are observed in the context of Jammu and Kashmir include the following:
After the removal of
Article 370, the government has further made several measures to assimilate
Jammu and Kashmir into the Indian Union even more effectively. These include
undertaking the marketing of investments, the actualization of the Indian laws,
and extension of social welfare schemes. But the opponents easily counter by
pointing to the fact that the security is volatile in the region as militants
and security forces are known to conduct operations frequently. They also
attribute this to human right abuses especially in the Political Leaders
detention which they say should not take years and the freedom of speech
issues.
In economic terms,
there has been some implantation of change but it still a long way from the
kind of development that the government had envisioned. The ‘Travel and
Tourism’ sector that forms a very important part of the Kashmir Valley’s
economy also felt the brunt of the lockdowns as well as the COVID-19 outbreak,
although there are signs of revival these days.
Conclusion
Article 370 issue
still divides politics in India as well as the global politics arena. For BJP,
the move was both the end of the party’s objective of national integration and
the construction of a more powerful centralized state, however, the Congress
and other opposition parties labelled it as assault on democracy and
federalism. Pakistan’s support to Congress’s stand itself has made the problem
crux even more and expanded it to a geo-political level.
Unfortunately, the
future of Jammu and Kashmir in terms of its political and economic prospect
remains uncertain. That the Supreme Court may yet rule on the matter may offer
legal direction the political and diplomatic consequences of revoking Article
370 suggest will linger for years.
