Srinagar: The process to present the recently passed resolution seeking the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status to the central government will begin next week, a source said on Saturday.
The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Secretariat has sent the resolution to the chief secretary for ‘necessary action’ before being presented to the central government for consideration, the source said.
This comes as a top legal expert says the resolution, which triggered a ruckus in the inaugural session of the Assembly, does not require any assent from the Lieutenant Governor.
Introduced by Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary on November 6, the resolution was passed by a voice vote on the same day in the inaugural session of the 90-member UT legislative assembly. It sought the restoration of the special status the erstwhile state enjoyed under Article 370, which was unilaterally abrogated by the BJP government in August 2019.
The resolution also urged the Government of India to initiate a dialogue with the elected representatives of Jammu and Kashmir to work out constitutional mechanisms for restoring the region’s constitutional safeguards. According to a source, the J&K government is yet to work out the modalities for presenting the resolution to the Centre and the same would be decided next week.
The inaugural five-day session of the Legislative Assembly concluded on Friday amid din spurred by the BJP legislators against the passing of the resolution.
“The process to send it (the resolution) will be decided next week,” a source said. “The resolution will be presented to the central government soon.”
Last month, the resolution on statehood passed in the maiden cabinet meeting of the government was presented by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital.
“It is expected some representatives from the Abdullah government may visit the national capital to present it (the resolution special status) to the central government. But we have not readied the names,” the source said.
Former J&K Advocate General Muhammad Ishaq Qadri said the resolution which was passed under Rule 188 of the House does not require a nod from the Lieutenant Governor.
“The LG’s ascent is only meant for the bills approved by the Legislative Assembly to become law,” he said. “The resolution will be presented to the Prime Minister like the autonomy resolution in 2000. It does not require anything else. The House has done its job,” Qadri added.
The resolution, according to him, reflects the legislature’s disapproval of the abrogation of Article 370 by the Parliament in August 2019. Qadri also brushed aside the criticism of Opposition legislators for calling the resolution vague and said the words “special status” reflect legal language.
In 2000, the National Conference government led by Farooq Abdullah passed a resolution for renewed efforts to get its core agenda autonomy, the pre-1953 position restored. But the resolution was binned by the then NDA government by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Wary that the new resolution may face a similar fate, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday said on the floor of the House that ‘the resolution was crafted carefully so future possibilities remain open’.
“That is why we used those words in the resolution with deep thought. Maybe tomorrow there will not be my government here and the Centre may have a different government and the roadmap will be easy for them. The situation will change, so why should we confine ourselves?” (ETV Bharat)
