Shifting Paradigms

Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) came under Governor’s rule when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended its alliance with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in 2018; the state assembly was dissolved and President’s rule imposed. In 2019, Article 370 of the Indian constitution was abrogated, and J&K was turned into a centrally administered territory under the control of a lieutenant governor appointed by the central government. Without a state legislative assembly at the time, the central government passed the State Reorganisation Act by treating the parliament as the representative body for J&K. The abrogation process faced criticism for sidelining the voices and representation of the people of J&K in this crucial decision-making process ( Al Jazeera, 2019 ; BBC, 2019 ; India Today, 2019 , Chandrachud, 2019 ; Nair, 2019 ).