Govt’s Sinister Move to Disempower J&K: Mehbooba Warns Entire State Will Fight Article 370 Amendment

New Delhi: Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti, has slammed the central government for amending Article 370 via the ordinance route, saying that it was akin to adding fuel to the fire.

Mufti tweeted late on Thursday evening asking why the government was letting the state slip into chaos by pushing “Kashmiris on the wall.” “The past week has been quite tough for people of J&K. This is the last thing we need to exacerbate an uncertain situation,” she said.

“Ostensibly, using the Govs office seems to be a sinister move to further disempower the state. This will not be tolerated & the entire state will fight against this criminal and illegal move of GoI,” she added.

Her statement came after the Centre gave its nod to the promulgation of an ordinance for giving reservation benefits to SCs and STs in J&K by amending a clause of Article 370, which gives special status to the state.

The amendment will serve the purpose of applying the Constitution (Seventy Seventh Amendment) Act, 1995 and Constitution (One Hundred and third Amendment) Act, 2019 to Jammu and Kashmir by issuing the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Amendment Order, 2019 by the President under clause (1) of Article 370, the official statement by the government said.

Mufti’s party, PDP, also stated that the President’s rule in J&K, which by design is interim in arrangement, is “stretching its mandate a bit too far.”

Stating that the move is a “contravention to the spirit of Article 370,” the party further said that the “act of according concurrence by the administration is beyond its authority/jurisdiction & fiddles with matters which pertain to constitutional relationship between J&K and Union of India.”

Mufti in a tweet has extended the party and her support to work with like-minded parties and people of the state to “fight this battle tooth and nail in the courts.”

The Union Cabinet also decided to promulgate an ordinance -- The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019 -- to give reservation benefits to the people living along the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir, who often face shelling from across the border.

This facility was so far available to the people living along the Actual Line of Control in the state who also face similar living condition.

This proposal was also moved by the Jammu and Kashmir government, which is under President’s Rule.