The Supreme Court is set to hear a petition on Friday, 8 August, requesting the central government to restore statehood to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

This plea was brought before Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai by senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, who confirmed that the case is scheduled for hearing on Friday.

The petition, submitted by Zahoor Ahmed Bhat and activist Khurshaid Ahmad Malik, argues that the ongoing delay in reinstating statehood is “seriously impacting the rights of the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir and also infringing upon the principles of federalism.”

The petitioners contend that the lack of a timely restoration of statehood constitutes a breach of federalism, which is an essential component of the Basic Structure of the Constitution.

In the verdict regarding “In re: Article 370 of the Constitution,” a 5-judge Constitution Bench, led by then CJI D.Y. Chandrachud, left unresolved the issue of whether Parliament has the authority to eliminate the status of statehood by transforming a state into one or more Union Territories, based on the statement from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that statehood would be reinstated for Jammu and Kashmir.

Nevertheless, the bench directed the Election Commission of India to initiate preparations for conducting elections for the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, as established under Section 14 of the Reorganisation Act, by 30 September 2024, and emphasized that “restoration of statehood should occur at the earliest and as soon as feasible.”

During previous hearings, SG Mehta informed the court that the Union Home Ministry was unable to provide a definitive timeline and indicated that it would require “some time” to restore statehood.

In May 2024, the Supreme Court rejected review petitions contesting its ruling, asserting that there was “no apparent error in the record” and declined to schedule the matter for open court.