Supreme Court hearing on Article 370: No exact timeline for restoration of J&K statehood, says Centre

The Central government on August 31 told the Supreme Court that it cannot give any exact timeframe for the restoration of statehood in Jammu and Kashmir.

“We are progressively proceeding to make J&K a complete state. But, I am unable to give the exact time period right now about the complete statehood, as per my instructions,” submitted Solicitor General Tushar Mehta before the Constitution Bench hearing pleas against abrogation of Article 370.

Mehta went on to say that the Central Government is prepared for elections at any moment since the Election Commission is updating the voter list on a regular basis. He stated that the State Election Commission and the Election Commission of India will make the election call.

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On Tuesday, a Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud directed the Attorney General and Solicitor General to seek instructions from the Central government regarding the timetable for restoring statehood to the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, which was downgraded to two union territories in 2019.

During the hearing, the Supreme Court emphasised that the former state could not be a "Union Territory in perpetuity," and that the restoration of democracy was critical.