The Indian government on Saturday hailed its decision in 2019 to abrogate the semi-autonomous status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, with the Indian cabinet hailing the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the “decisive and historic step.”
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that the decision has put Jammu and Kashmir on a “path of development” in line with the rest of the country.
India’s Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri called the move a “milestone decision”.
“I join my brothers and sisters of Jammu and Kashmir in celebrating an era of progress and development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Puri posted on X.
Cabinet minister Kiren Rijiju remarked that the “divisive Article 370” was a “hurdle” between the residents of Jammu and Kashmir and the rest of the country.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the decision has led to a decrease in the number of terror incidents in the region, besides having increased investments.
History of Revoking Article 370
On 5 August 2019, New Delhi revoked Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution.
The next day, the Parliament formally voted to repeal the constitutional provisions and also bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union Territories (UTs)—Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
The bills to the effect were introduced by Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, who said that these provisions were “temporary” in nature. Article 370 was introduced in 1949, when Jammu and Kashmir’s former king decided to accede to India in the wake of the Partition of the subcontinent by British imperialists two years before that, in 1947.
Article 370 accorded a semi-autonomous status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. Shah told the Indian Parliament in 2019 that “because of article 370, the laws of the Union of India did not apply to Jammu and Kashmir,” according to an official statement.
Similarly, the Indian government has said that because of Article 35A, the residents of Jammu and Kashmir were being deprived of economic benefits under federal schemes which were available to people in other parts of the country.
Local political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have opposed the move, with widespread protests having broken out in the region following the government’s decision at the time.
Meanwhile, India’s Supreme Court this week began hearing a number of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of New Delhi’s decision.
Pakistan's PM Reiterates Call to Reverse Decision
Islamabad, which controls part of Jammu and Kashmir, condemned New Delhi for its move on August 5.
In the wake of New Delhi’s decision, Islamabad downgraded its diplomatic and commercial ties with its eastern neighbor. Pakistan has since maintained that it would resume dialogue with India only after India reverses its moves.
New Delhi has rejected Islamabad’s comments, as it maintains that anything to do with Jammu and Kashmir remains an “internal matter” for India.
On Saturday, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif once again asked India to reverse its decision on Jammu and Kashmir.
“The last four years have represented the culmination of the worst human rights abuses including but not limited to the demographic changes, issuance of fake domiciles, internet shutdown, complete information blackout and imprisonment of Kashmiri leadership of all hues and colors,” Sharif said.
Sharif said that Islamabad would continue to offer its “unwavering diplomatic, moral and political support” to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.