- Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Jitendra Singh, sparked off a controversy when he was reported to have said that the process of abrogation of Article 370 –which was listed under BJP’s manifesto – has been initiated.
- This was followed by heated arguments between Hindu nationalists – who vehemently oppose Article 370, and the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference.
- Under its provisions, the State is allowed its own Constitution and to limit the Parliament’s authority to legislate it.
- In 1954, when Sheikh Abdullah was in prison, Syed Mir Qasim’s regime expanded Parliament’s powers, and extended the Constitution’s Fundamental Rights to the State.
- This was followed by Constitution orders that handed over the jurisdiction of the State to the Supreme Court, and the supervisory power to the Election Commission of India.
- In 2001, the J&K Assembly passed a resolution seeking the restitution of the original, unchanged Article 370. This was vehemently opposed by the NDA which even refused to discuss the demand.
- While it is certain that the debate over Article 370 will be critical in the final resolution of the Indo-Pak dispute over the State, the debate itself should not be held in a frivolous manner.
- Read at:http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/douse-the-sparks-on-article-370/article6073298.ece
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