SC Hearing Of Article 370: Kapil Sibal Draws Striking Comparison Between The Abrogation And Annexation Of Junagadh

The SC hearing of Article 370 took place on Wednesday, in which Senior Advocate, Kapil Sibal challenged the abrogation of the article. The Senior Advocate criticized the decision of the government and called it “the act of crown”. Sibal said,  “You cannot jettison the people of Jammu and Kashmir and decide. Then what will be the difference between this and the act of crown or annexation of Junagadh or Hyderabad?”

For those who don’t know, the Muslim Babi dynasty in India ruled over the princely state of Junagadh in Gujarat. Then it joined the Dominion of Pakistan following the division of British India. The Union of India then controversially legitimized the annexation of Junagadh in 1948. India held voting in the same year.

Pre-independence agreement to be enforced suggests Mr. Sibal

Whatever they may be, people’s hopes and desires must be honoured. If the hypothesis is rejected, the only option, according to Sibal, is to argue that a pre-independence agreement must be upheld. This is only on the assumption that 370 becomes permanent when the constituent assembly ceases to exist.

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Kapil Sibal: No reason to abrogate Article 370

In the beginning of the court hearing, Kapil Sibal said that the special status of Jammu and Kashmir shouldn’t have been taken away from the state. He also explained that it is “unquestionable” that J&K will be integrated with India in the future.

The advocate said, “The reason why I say that the Constitution of India was applicable to J&K is that over time, there were several orders issued which were incorporated into the Constitution – the result was that most powers were in tandem with the constitution of India,” he said.

“Despite that, the whole structure was changed. There was no reason to take Article 370 away,” he added.

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The SC hearing of Article 370

The Supreme Court started hearing petitions today that contested the repeal of Article 370, which gave the former state of Jammu and Kashmir special status. The appeals will be heard every day, save Mondays and Fridays. Five-judge Constitution Bench that includes Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, and Surya Kant will carry on the proceedings. The petitions contest a presidential order that repealed Article 370 that was issued on August 5, 2019.