Salman Khurshid criticises Indian SC for relying on govt in Article 370 case
New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid has criticised the Indian Supreme Court for siding with the Modi government in the landmark Article 370 case, which revoked the special status of occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, speaking at the launch of journalist Bashir Assad’s books, “Kashmir: The Unfiltered Truth” and “House Without Witness”, Khurshid said the apex court relied on the government’s assurance that Jammu and Kashmir’s full statehood would be restored “swiftly” instead of examining the broader constitutional principle of federalism.
“Federalism is something we perhaps lost out on when there was a chance for the SC to take up what was a true test case of federalism,” Khurshid said, highlighting India’s strength in its diversity of languages, cultures, and ways of life. He warned against equating uniformity with national strength.
On December 11, 2023, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the revocation of Article 370 while directing that statehood for Jammu and Kashmir be restored “at the earliest”. Khurshid criticised the court for bypassing a deeper judicial examination of federalism, noting that respectful debate and exchange of ideas are vital to India’s democratic ethos.
Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Sinha, also present at the book launch, praised Assad’s works for presenting “unfiltered thought” and stressed that while Kashmir is often romanticized as a territory, the voices and suffering of the Kashmiri people are routinely ignored.
From the perspective of Kashmiris, neither federalism nor Article 370 resolves the core political dispute. Jammu and Kashmir remains a disputed territory under international law, and its final status can only be determined through a free and fair plebiscite as mandated by United Nations resolutions, respecting the will and aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
