J&K political leaders welcome SC hearing pleas challenging Article 370 abrogation, say expect ‘justice’

New Delhi/Srinagar/Jammu, Aug 2 (PTI) Leaders of many political parties on Tuesday welcomed the commencement of the Supreme Court’s day-to-day hearing on a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 and said they expected justice would be finally served to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti said the Supreme Court was the only institution left in India that can ensure that the country is governed as per the Constitution, while National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah said abrogating Article 370 was against the law and he expected the top court will undo it.

The BJP too said the Supreme Court hearing the Article 370 pleas was a “good thing”, but asserted that the Constitution provision was done away with legally.

Working president of J-K Congress Raman Bhalla said he has “full faith” in the apex court that it will give much-needed justice to the people of the erstwhile state.

Many others said the top court’s verdict will put a full stop to the contentious issue.

A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud on Wednesday commenced hearing a batch of pleas challenging the Centre’s August 5, 2019 decision to abrogate Article 370, a move that had come in for vicious attack by some major opposition parties but earned fulsome praise from those supporting the BJP.

“Entire world is watching Supreme Court proceedings in Article 370. Jammu and Kashmir, despite being a Muslim-majority state, rejected the two-nation theory based on religion and joined hands with India. We were granted assurances under the Constitution. These guarantees were not given by China, Pakistan or any neighbouring country,” Mehbooba said, addressing media persons at the PDP office in Srinagar.

“The Supreme Court will have to see how the institutions in the country have been subverted and the apex court remains the only institution that can save the Constitution. BJP is not only playing with the Constitution based on its brute majority in Parliament but also ignoring everything including the SC rulings. They brought an ordinance after SC ruling on Delhi which is unconstitutional,” she added.

Mehbooba said the Supreme Court will have to take a bold stand for upholding the majesty of the Constitution.

“The Supreme Court is the only institution left that can save the Constitution and the country,” she said.

Former J-K chief minister Omar Abdullah said he expected justice from the top court.

“Whatever happened with Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019 was wrong. It was against the Constitution and the law,” he said on the premises of the top court in Delhi.

“We have got the opportunity to put forth our grievances. We expect justice like any other citizens of the country,” he said.

Former J-K deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader Kavinder Gupta said they hoped for a positive result in the Article 370 issue.

“It is a good thing that the Supreme Court is hearing the issue. But, I want to say that the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Saba have discussed it and then passed it. It has a final stamp of the President of India,” he said.

Congress leader Bhalla said the people of Jammu and Kashmir were eagerly waiting for the day when the hearing would begin in the Supreme Court on the Article 370 pleas.

“We are happy that a beginning has been made in this direction. They (people) have full faith in the top court and hope that they would get the much-need justice from it,” he told PTI.

Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad too pinned hope on the “positive outcome” of the petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370.

“I express my sincere gratitude to (Kapil) Sibal for his historical, fearless and eloquent presentation and arguments before the court against abrogation of Article 370 today,” Azad said.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal led the arguments on behalf of petitioners challenging the abrogation of Article 370.

“We have been unwaveringly fighting from Parliament to the Supreme Court in pursuit of justice for people of Jammu and Kashmir,” Azad said.

Secretary, Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP), Capt (retd) Anil Gaur said it was a good thing said that the top court is hearing the Article 370 pleas.

“Now that the Supreme Court is hearing it, the judgement by it will put a full stop on the issue once for all,” he said.

Kashmiri Pandit leader Arvind Kaul said the Article 370 issue has become a “political phobia” in Jammu and Kashmir.

“It is a phobia. Political parties have exploited the issue since the past 75 years. Some say we want bring it back and others say it has been done away with once for all. Now that the SC is hearing it, its judgement will be final,” Kaul said.

On August 5, 2019, the Centre came out with a notification repealing Article 370 and it also stripped the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir of its special status and bifurcated it into Union territories.

Several petitions challenging the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which split the erstwhile state into Union territories – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh – were referred to a Constitution bench in 2019.