Liquidating the very Statehood by Legal Engineering.

• The title of this writing may sound bizarre but it holds true. Article 370 has not been done away with in toto but it stands liquidated for all the purpose of giving special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir which, within a day or two from now, will remain no more a State but a region comprising two union territories, namely Union Territory of Ladakh and Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Courtesy gazette notification dated 05.08.2019 containing presidential order and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Bill passed in the Rajya Sabha today. It serves as master class example of legal engineering employed towards achieving the objective without obliterating article 370 from the Constitution of India. Article 370 will remain without identity it had or the force it commanded a short while ago towards making the State of J&K a Special one vis a vis other states.

The sub-clause (1) of 370 has been invoked to divest the State of the special status. This happened through exercise of power given to The President under sub clause (1) of Article 370 to issue Order in consultation with the  Government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. This Power was exercised in 1954 also but for the diametrically opposite purpose. The purpose was to confer Special Status to this state. But this time the same power is exercised to divest the State of that Speciality. Modus operandi is the same that is to issue Presidential Order named the Constitution(Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 whereby the Order of 1954 that is the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954 stands superseded. Thus the Order 1954 which disentitled, inter alia, a  non-Kashmiri to settle in Kashmir or seek employment under the state government or purchase immovable property there is a dead letter henceforth. Article 35 A is now non existent because the very Order of 1954 that mentioned it to be read after article 35 of the Constitution itself stands superseded by the new presidential order.
The latest presidential order caused heavy changes by providing for introduction of one more sub-clause in the Article 367 that has far reaching impact to render the State of Jammu and Kashmir at par with other states.
For the purpose of this Constitution as it applies in relation to this state
i) references to this Constitution would mean the references of the Constitution as applied to the State of Jammu and Kashmir. (So the Constitution of the State of Jammu and Kashmir is rendered hereby ineffective for all purposes without mentioning a word about it! )
ii) references to the person recognized as Sadar-i-Riyasat recognized by the president to mean Governor of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
iii) references to the State government will mean to include Governor acting on the advice of his Council of Ministers.
This order refers Constitutional Assembly mentioned in Article 370 to mean Legislative Assembly that  has far reaching consequences.
Today the Rajya Sabha also passed Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Bill, 2019 envisaging the bifurcation of the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. One the Union Territory of Ladakh and the remaining area to be constituted as the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with a legislative assembly.  Now the very status of state of Jammu and Kashmir is going to disappear and the birth of two union territories is now an impending reality.
Thus evidently a simple tweaking caused a great impact without a bang or thud. It happened so swiftly and smoothly by pre empting any possibility of violent opposition through heavy military reinforcement in the State and keeping those liable to cause unrest under house arrest.
R.R.Prabhakar,
05.08.2019.