Nearly four years after the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, which gave special status to the erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir, a Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud will hear a batch of 20-odd petitions challenging the Central government’s move, Bar and Bench reported.
The Bench also comprises Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai and Surya Kant.
The case has been listed for directions on July 11, when the Court will also take up the issue whether the petition by bureacrat Shah Faesal can be withdrawn.
Over 20 petitions are pending before the Supreme Court challenging the Central government’s decision to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution, which resulted in the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status. The erstwhile State was subsequently bifurcated into two Union Territories.
When the matters were last listed in March 2020, a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court decided not to refer the batch of petitions to a seven-judge Constitution Bench, despite some petitioners seeking a reference. The petitioners argued that two Supreme Court judgments – Prem Nath Kaul v. State of Jammu & Kashmir and Sampat Prakash v. State of Jammu & Kashmir – which were rendered by five-judge benches and dealt with the interpretation of Article 370, were in conflict.
However, the five-judge bench that was hearing the case declined to refer the matter to a larger bench, stating that there was no conflict between the two judgments.
The pleas were also mentioned before a Bench headed by CJI Chandrachud in February this year. The CJI had then said that he would “take a call” on listing the same.
