Article 370 which regulates the manner in and the extent to which the Constitution of India applies to J&K-has been scrapped by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday.
In his address to the Upper House, Shah also said the government proposed to reorganise Jammu and Kashmir by carving out two separate Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir with an Assembly and Ladakh without one.
Here is all you need to know about Article 370:
- Article 370 of the Indian Constitution is a 'temporary provision' that allows special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The article gives sovereignty and autonomous status to the state. By this provision, the laws which are applicable to other states are not applicable to the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
- As per the article, except for defence, foreign affairs, finance and communications, the parliament needs the J&K government's concurrence for applying all other laws.
- Article 370 grants the resident of Jammu and Kashmir to live under a separate set of laws, including those related to citizenship, fundamental rights, property rights etc than those of other Indians.
- Article 35A which 'flows from' Article 370- grants special privileges and rights to the people of Kashmir. It prevents the outsiders of the state from either seeking permanent settlement in the state or buying immovable property in the state. It also prevents those who are not 'permanent residents' of the state to get government jobs in the state.
- The provision was drafted in 1947 by Sheikh Abdullah, who had by then been appointed the prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir by Maharaja Hari Singh and Jawahar Lal Nehru.
- Although Abdullah had argued that Article 370 should not be temporary but rather Jammu and Kashmir should have 'iron clad autonomy'. But the Centre did not comply with Abdullah's demand.
