Article 370 of the Indian Constitution grants a special category of status to Jammu & Kashmir state. It also restricts the power of the federal legislature by legislature to pass laws for the entire state. In effect, the special privileges, which are defined as temporary, allow the State of Jammu & Kashmir to maintain its own constitution, flag and decide on many other issues except for a matter which is of immediate and permanent nature. The situation is similar with other states too, where the implementation of Articles 14 and 37 has also created difficulties in the form of law. Even if a state is ready to pass legislation for maintaining the integrity of the constitution and amending the pre-existing laws, it takes much time to get through the ratifying session of the legislature.
The Article has met with great resistance across India because of the implications it carries in the constitution of India. The Article can be understood as a protection against terrorism. Terrorism is defined as an act which causes significant loss of life or serious damage to property. Many people across India feel that the Article does not provide enough political mileage to Jammu & Kashmir state. But this debate will be long gone once the implementation process starts.
The Article states that the federal government shall not grant any type of governmental aid, facility or assistance to terrorist organizations or groups that are listed as banned or designated as terrorist organizations in India. The meaning of this article could be interpreted in different ways by different people across the country. For example, some people may think that economic assistance is meant and some might think that the financial contribution should be made to the development front. Therefore, this provision of the article could be used effectively to curb the activities of certain economic nodes that do not contribute positively towards the economic development of India.
There are many analysts who feel that the impact of Article 370 on Jammu & Kashmir cannot be overlooked. This is mainly because of the way Article 370 abrogates the Kashmir province. Jammu & Kashmir is considered to be the core province of India. When it comes to international relations, one cannot ignore the significance of Kashmir.
There are many reasons why Drabu had to abrogate the article in Jammu & Kashmir – one of them being the presence of excessive military presence. Any change in the balance of power in the state would have a negative impact on Kashmir’s peace and tranquility. Moreover, Drabu had to abstain from the election by virtue of the provision made in the Constituency Constitution (FC) that an MLA could not be elected until he or she had undergone five years of military service. Consequently, this measure was also called the Drabu Decision.
The political analysts feel that Drabu’s move can never be justified by the fact that the government has not extended any legislative measures to address the issues of Article 370. The other argument advanced against this decision is that the federal government has offered Article 370 as a gift to Jammu & Kashmir and has failed to compensate the loss of territory to India by giving out any benefit to Jammu & Kashmir, as well as to other states in India. The other argument for abrogating Article 370 on the grounds that it violates the Special Cell and privileges with respect to Jammu & Kashmir is also unconvincing, as there is no guarantee that the provincial legislature will pass such a measure.
In the past, the PDP government of Jammu & Kashmir had promised to pass an ameliorative economic package to compensate for the loss of territory to India. Although the fiscal policy of the PDP remains weak, the party is yet to form a united front to counter the economic policies of the Centre and the main opposition parties, with the exception of the Jammu & Kashmir government. It seems that the recent defeat of the PPP in the assembly polls in Jammu & Kashmir may have been able to shift the political focus of state governments in the Centre and the major opposition parties to tackle economic issues head-on, rather than playing the blame game over the Special Cell. This new line of attack by the opposition parties may force the Centre to reassess its approach in Jammu & Kashmir and pressurize the state government to revert to the old normal.
Till now the Centre has not announced any new steps in the matter. On the one hand, it is not interested in pushing the issue because it has already lost most of its credibility over the past few months. On the other hand, it does not want to antagonize the people of Jammu & Kashmir, who have demanded equal rights to their neighbors. Whether Article 370 should be brought back into effect or not, it is the prerogative of the federal government. The house of cards is on the brink of collapse unless the federal leadership takes immediate corrective measures.