The Jammu and Kashmir verdict: It's time for India to look ahead

livemint.com:

The judgement by a Constitution bench of the Supreme Court (SC) validating the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution is welcome, as is the response of leaders from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) that highlights their determination to build a better future, rather than squabble over the past, even if they did not agree with the 2019 decision of India’s government to remove the Article that granted a special status to J&K. All laws made by Parliament now stand applicable to Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, as to other states and Union territories (UTs).

One judge of the SC bench, Justice Sanjay Kaul, also recommended the setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as “wounds require healing." A former chief minister of J&K promised to set up such a body if elected to office. The SC ruling did not give blanket approval to all steps taken by the Centre to abrogate Article 370.

While upholding the end move, it struck down an interim step that used Article 367 of the Constitution, meant for interpreting constitutional provisions, to amend J&K’s “Constituent Assembly" into “Legislative Assembly." This, however, did not hinder the use of Article 370 by the President to scrap the same Article. A troubling aspect of how the administration fulfilled the ruling party’s electoral promise to withdraw J&K’s special status was that Parliament had exercised the J&K legislature’s powers while the erstwhile state was under President’s rule.