Kashmir masterstroke by Modi-Shah duo: Article 370, 35A scrapped, state bifurcated into UTs

Putting an end to all wild speculations and online and offline rumours, the Narendra Modi government on Monday revoked the Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also proposed the bifurcation of the state. The third key takeaway of today’s big announcement was the scrapping of Article 35A, which empowered Jammu and Kashmir state's legislature to define “permanent residents” of the state and provide special rights and privileges to those permanent residents. The Monday’s big announcements will have far reaching effects on the ground. (KASHMIR LIVE UPDATES)

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With Article 370 becoming history, Jammu and Kashmir will not have separate state flag. With President Ram Nath Kovind’s nod to scrapping of Article 35A, every Indian will now be able to buy property in Jammu and Kashmir. Instead of the Ranbir Penal Code, the entire region will now fall under the jurisdiction of the Indian Penal Code. With these announcements, the Modi government at the Centre will have right on land and police power in Jammu and Kashmir.

As against the trifurcation buzz, the Modi government announced the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir. Shah also moved a bill proposing bifurcation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories -- Jammu and Kashmir division and Ladakh. Shah, who introduced the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation bill, said the union territory in Ladakh will have no legislature like Chandigarh. The other union territory of Jammu and Kashmir will have a legislature like Delhi and Puducherry.

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As pointed out by senior Congress leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, with this mega movie, India will now have 28 states and nine Union Territories. This also means that all rules and regulations of the Indian Constitution will also be now applicable to the region.

The Monday move ends the seven-decade old history of Article 370. Two months after India won independence 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh, the then ruler of Jammu and Kashmir, signed a Treaty of Accession for the state to join the rest of the union, formalised in Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. Article 35A of India's constitution permitted the local legislature in Kashmir to define permanent residents of the region. The article came into being in 1954 by a presidential order under the constitution's Article 370.

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