Moment of celebration for all who dreamt of complete integration of J&K with Bharat: Anurag Thakur

New Delhi [India], December 11 (ANI): Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur called the Supreme Court’s verdict, which upheld the Union Government’s decision to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution, a winning and celebratory moment for all those who dreamt of complete integration of Jammu and Kashmir with Bharat.

“The people of Bharat are overwhelmed by the judgment of the Supreme Court upholding the decision of the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35 A of the Constitution by the NDA government led by PM Narendra Modi,” Anurag Thakur posted on X.

“This is yet another victory and moment of celebration for all the nationalist people of the country who dreamt of complete integration of Jammu and Kashmir with Bharat for which they fought political and legal battles and even sacrificed their lives,” further read the post.

The Supreme Court, on Monday, upheld the Union Government’s decision to abrogate Article 370 of the constitution, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir and said that every decision taken by the centre on behalf of a state can’t be subject to a legal challenge.

Anurag Thakur, in his post on X, also lauded the Modi government for withdrawing the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

“On August 5, 2019, the day the Modi government withdrew the special status of J&K to undo one of the many historic blunders committed by Congress during the Nehruvian era, certain political ecosystems and its offshoots and offshore sympathisers started conspiracies against this integration process because they never wanted normalcy to return to the valley,” read the post.

The post further stated, “The unification of Bharat was incomplete without ‘Ek Pradhan, Ek Nishan, Ek Vidhan’, and this objective was finally achieved. Under the leadership of PM Modi, peace and prosperity are returning and people have rejected terrorism. More power to @narendramodi because the nation trusts him as a man of his word who can restore the glory and territory of Bharat, lost in the past. Jayatu Bharat.”

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the verdict heralds a bright future for the people of J-K and Ladakh.

“Through today’s historic verdict, the Supreme Court has upheld the decision of the Parliament on 5 August 2019. In this time, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have seen the development, good governance and empowerment that were long their due. This has strengthened India’s unity and integrity. Today’s judgement portends a brighter future for our brothers and sisters in J&K and Ladakh. The Modi Government will continue its relentless efforts to bringing more growth and development for them” S Jaishankar said in his post on X.

A five-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, and Surya Kant delivered the verdict.

CJI Chandrachud, reading out the judgement, said that every decision taken by the Centre on behalf of a state under proclamation can’t be subject to a legal challenge and it will lead to the administration of the State to a standstill.

The Supreme Court said that it has held that Article 370 was a temporary provision.

“The proclamation of Maharaja stated that the Constitution of India would supersede. With this, the para of the Instrument of Accession ceases to exist…Article 370 was an interim arrangement due to war conditions in the State. Textual reading also indicates that Article 370 is a temporary provision,” the Court said.

The Court also noted that Article 370 was meant for the constitutional integration of Jammu and Kashmir with the Union and not for disintegration and the President can declare that Article 370 ceases to exist.

“The concurrence of the state government was not required to apply all provisions of the Constitution using Article 370(1)(d). So, the President of India taking the concurrence of the Union government was not malafide,” the Court noted.

The Supreme Court also directed the Election Commission to hold Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections by September 30, 2024. The Supreme Court said, in view of the Centre’s submission on the restoration of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir, it directs that statehood shall be restored as soon as possible.

On August 5, 2019, the central government announced the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir granted under Article 370 and split the region into two union territories.