The Supreme Court has dismissed a series of review petitions challenging its previous ruling that upheld the revocation of Article 370, which granted special autonomy to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, leading a five-judge bench, declared, “Having perused the review petitions, there is no error apparent on the face of the record. No case for review under Order XLVII, Rule 1 of the Supreme Court Rules 2013. The review petitions are, therefore, dismissed.”
The bench, comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B.R. Gavai, Surya Kant, and A.S. Boppana, also rejected applications for listing the review petition in open court and for permission to appear and argue in person.
The review petitions, filed under Article 137 of the Constitution, contended that the Supreme Court’s December 11 verdict failed to address whether Parliament can alter the status of a state by converting it into Union Territories. The petitioners argued that this omission necessitated a review.
The December 11 judgment had confirmed Ladakh’s status as a Union Territory under Article 3(a) of the Constitution, which allows the formation of a Union Territory by separating a territory from a state. However, the court did not resolve whether Parliament has the authority to change the status of a state to a Union Territory.
“In view of the submission made by the Solicitor General that statehood would be restored to Jammu and Kashmir, we do not find it necessary to determine whether the reorganisation of the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir is permissible under Article 3,” the court had stated.
Additionally, the Supreme Court upheld the President’s authority to issue a notification declaring the cessation of Article 370, even after the dissolution of the Jammu and Kashmir Constituent Assembly. It affirmed that Article 370 was a temporary provision, reflecting its historical context.
The Supreme Court also instructed the Election Commission of India to organize elections for the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024.
Review petitions in the Supreme Court are typically evaluated on narrow grounds such as legal errors or evident mistakes on the record and are usually dismissed without open court hearings.
