The Supreme Court on Thursday said that “ground realities” must be factored in while considering the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, noting that recent events in Pahalgam cannot be ignored.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai, along with Justice K. Vinod Chandran, was hearing multiple petitions seeking statehood restoration. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta requested the court to take up the matter after eight weeks, citing “peculiar situations” in the region. The bench agreed to the timeline and asked the Centre to file its response after the constitution bench hears the presidential reference.
During the proceedings, Mehta said that, “while the Centre had assured the holding of elections followed by restoration of statehood, certain evolving circumstances required consideration before moving ahead. He stressed this was “not the correct stage to muddy the water.”
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing one of the petitioners, reminded the court that the Union government had assured statehood restoration once elections were completed. He pointed out that 21 months had passed since the December 2023 judgment, which upheld the revocation of Article 370 and directed that J&K assembly elections be held by September 2024.
“There has been no movement towards restoration,” he said, urging the court to fix a clear timeline.
Senior advocate Maneka Guruswamy also appeared for a petitioner, challenging the registrar’s rejection of her client’s application. Other counsels echoed the call for clubbing all statehood-related matters for a comprehensive hearing.
The petitioners argued that the delay in restoring statehood undermines federalism and denies J&K a democratically elected government, despite the peaceful conduct of both assembly and Lok Sabha polls without major security concerns.
The court will now take up the matter after eight weeks, with the Centre expected to submit its detailed stand.
