New Delhi-based forum warns political instability, human rights concerns persist in IIOJK
Calls for immediate restoration of statehood, urges repeal of Reorganisation Act
New Delhi: An independent human rights forum has called for the immediate restoration of full statehood to Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), warning that the territory remains politically unstable and that human rights concerns continue to deepen seven years after the revocation of its special statu
According to Kashmir Media Service, the New Delhi-based high-profile Forum for Human Rights in Jammu and Kashmir, comprising former judges of the Indian Supreme Court and several high courts, heads of premier human rights bodies, retired military officers and senior civil servants, made the observations in its annual report titled Jammu and Kashmir: Seven Years Under Union Rule, covering the period from August 2025 to July 2026.
The Forum is co-chaired by Gopal Pillai, former Indian Home Secretary, and Radha Kumar, former member of the Indian government’s Group of Interlocutors on Jammu and Kashmir.
Calling for the restoration of full Statehood to IIOJK and the repeal of the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019, the report said that growing demands for restoration reflected increasing public dissatisfaction with governance under the Union Territory administration. It also urged the Indian government to accept Ladakh’s demand for statehood and inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
The report noted it was the first time in independent India that an existing State had been demoted to Union Territory status. “This demotion contravened Articles 1 and 3 of the Constitution of India and the basic structure doctrine that India is a federal democracy. If that demotion was unconstitutional, then it follows that Statehood must be restored,” it said.
Highlighting the governance crisis in IIOJK, the report said power remained concentrated in the hands of the New Delhi-appointed Lieutenant Governor, who was not accountable to the people, while the elected government possessed little or no real executive authority. It also criticized the decision to vest emergency telecommunications powers in the Lieutenant Governor, saying it further weakened democratic governance in the territory.
The Forum also criticized the Indian authorities’ crackdown in IIOJK following the 2025 Red Fort attack, saying the measures fueled public resentment. It noted that hundreds of people were questioned after the attack, while more than 2,000 were reportedly detained following the subsequent killing of a police constable in Islamabad district.
The report further criticized the Indian government’s handling of the aftermath of the Red Fort attack, saying it failed to prevent a backlash against Kashmiri Muslims across India. It cited reports of housing discrimination, forced evictions, harassment by landlords and hostility towards Kashmiri Muslims in workplaces, educational institutions and public spaces.
Welcoming the National Conference (NC) and Congress campaigns for the restoration of statehood, the Forum cautioned against delaying the process on security grounds. It said any argument that the Red Fort attack justified postponing statehood was untenable and that the prevailing situation made restoration all the more necessary.
The report also highlighted continuing economic distress in IIOJK, criticizing what it described as the Indian government’s “start-stop” approach to development. It noted that unemployment remained twice the national average, the apple industry experienced its worst year in a decade, and tribal homes continued to be demolished in violation of the Forest Rights Act.
On Ladakh, the Forum reiterated its support for demands seeking statehood and inclusion in the Sixth Schedule. Referring to the use of force by Indian troops against peaceful protesters in Leh in September 2025, it called for the withdrawal of criminal cases registered against the youth involved in the demonstrations.
In its recommendations, the Forum urged the Indian government to restore full statehood to IIOJK, repeal the 2019 reorganisation, undertake police reforms, withdraw improperly invoked cases under the PSA and UAPA, restore independent oversight institutions in the territory and establish a dedicated human rights commission in Ladakh.
The Forum members include former Indian SC judge Justice Ruma Pal; former Chief Justice of the Delhi and Madras High Courts Justice A.P. Shah; former Orissa High Court Chief Justice Justice Bilal Nazki; former IIOJK High Court judge Justice Hasnain Masoodi; former National Human Rights Commission Secretary-General Probir Sen; historian Ramachandra Guha; former NCPCR chairperson Shantha Sinha; retired senior Indian military officers including Lt Gen H.S. Panag, Maj Gen Ashok Mehta and Air Vice Marshal Kapil Kak.
