Srinagar (GNP): The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Monday passed a resolution urging the Government of India to restore full statehood to the territory immediately, after a tense session in which legislators of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) protested and eventually walked out.
The resolution was moved by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and adopted by voice vote. It asks for the “immediate and urgent restoration of full statehood” and directs that the text be forwarded to the Centre. It also refers to two earlier Assembly resolutions, one passed in June 2000 and another in November 2024. The first, adopted under the National Conference government led by Farooq Abdullah, sought the autonomy the region held before 9 August 1953, while the second called for restoration of its special status.
Those references shaped much of the debate. At least 10 amendments were tabled, and several sought to write the demand for Article 370, Article 35A and special status directly into the new text. Abdullah appealed to members not to press them, arguing that the Assembly had already passed separate resolutions on special status and that repeating the demand would give the BJP a reason to oppose the statehood resolution. The members who had proposed the amendments then agreed to withdraw them, which cleared the way for the original resolution to be put to a vote.
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The BJP’s objections centred on the same language. Opposition leader Sunil Sharma said the party supports statehood but considers parts of the resolution unacceptable and unconstitutional. BJP members raised slogans and entered the well of the House during the debate, then left the chamber as the resolution was passed.
The dispute over the territory’s status dates back to 5 August 2019, when India revoked its special status and split it into two Union Territories. The move drew criticism from Kashmiri groups and Pakistan, which has long maintained that Jammu and Kashmir is disputed territory whose final status should be settled in line with United Nations Security Council resolutions. That background explains why the statehood demand, though limited in wording, remains politically sensitive.
The resolution states that it calls for “immediate and urgent restoration of full statehood” to Jammu and Kashmir.
Managing Editor at Global News Pakistan (GNP), with a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from Riphah International University, graduated with a Gold Medal. Reach out at sabahtareengnp@gmail.com
