Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019

J&K reorganisation 2019 refers to the statutory process, carried out through the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, by which the former State of Jammu and Kashmir was dissolved and replaced by two separate Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir (with a legislature) and Ladakh (without a legislature) — with effect from 31 October 2019. The reorganisation was preceded, by a day, by presidential orders that ended the special constitutional status the State had held under Article 370. Together these steps form one of the most significant territorial and constitutional changes in independent India.

Background: The Special Status Under Article 370

Article 370 was a "temporary provision" that allowed only a limited set of Union List and Concurrent List subjects — those corresponding to the Instrument of Accession — to apply to Jammu and Kashmir without the State government's concurrence; other Central laws needed the State's concurrence to apply. This arrangement, dating to the State's accession, meant Jammu and Kashmir functioned under its own Constitution and retained autonomy that other States did not have. Over decades, successive Presidential Orders under Article 370(1) had already extended many, though not all, constitutional provisions to the State.

The Presidential Orders of August 2019

The reorganisation followed two Presidential Orders issued a day apart:

With C.O. 273, Article 370 was effectively rendered inoperative, and Jammu and Kashmir came to be governed by the Constitution of India on the same footing as other parts of the Union, without the separate State Constitution that had earlier existed.

Key Provisions of the Reorganisation Act

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 restructured the erstwhile State into two distinct Union Territories:

The Act took effect from 31 October 2019. The Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is empowered to make laws on subjects in the State List (except public order and police) and the Concurrent List, a pattern comparable to the legislative arrangement for Delhi and Puducherry. Ladakh, having no legislature of its own, is administered directly through the Lieutenant Governor, in the manner of Union Territories such as Chandigarh or the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The Act also abolished the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council, the upper house of the erstwhile State legislature. This left only six States in India with a bicameral legislature.

Judicial Arrangements

The Act provided that the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir would continue as a common High Court for both new Union Territories — the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh. Judges of the erstwhile State's High Court holding office immediately before 31 October 2019 became judges of this common High Court on that date, ensuring continuity in the judicial set-up despite the territorial change.

Amendment to the First Schedule

The Act amended the First Schedule to the Constitution, which lists the States and Union Territories of India along with their territorial extent. The entry relating to the State of Jammu and Kashmir was deleted from the list of States, and entries in the list of Union Territories were renumbered accordingly to accommodate the two new Union Territories. Following this change, the First Schedule reflects the present structure of 28 States and 8 Union Territories.

Reasons Cited for the Reorganisation

While moving the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019 in Parliament, the government cited distinct reasons for the treatment of each region:

• Ladakh: A large, sparsely populated area with difficult terrain and a long-pending local demand for Union Territory status to enable its people to pursue their own developmental aspirations; hence created as a Union Territory without a legislature.
• Jammu and Kashmir: Citing the prevailing internal security situation and cross-border terrorism affecting the region, a separate Union Territory was created with a legislature, retaining an elected government structure.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims

• Know the effective date of the Act (31 October 2019) and the two Union Territories it created.
• Distinguish Union Territories with a legislature (Delhi, Puducherry, Jammu and Kashmir) from those without (including Ladakh, Chandigarh).
• Note the dates of the two Presidential Orders — C.O. 272 (5 August 2019) and C.O. 273 (6 August 2019) — and what each did.
• Remember the current count: 28 States and 8 Union Territories under the First Schedule.

Mains

• Examine the constitutional mechanism (Article 370 read with Article 3) used to reorganise the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories.
• Discuss the distinction between a Union Territory with a legislature and one without, using Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh as examples.
• Analyse the implications of abolishing a State Legislative Council on the federal and legislative structure.

FAQ

Q1. What is the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019? It is the law by which the former State of Jammu and Kashmir was reorganised, with effect from 31 October 2019, into two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir (with a legislature) and Ladakh (without a legislature).

Q2. Does Ladakh have its own legislature? No. The Union Territory of Ladakh has no legislature and is administered directly by a Lieutenant Governor, similar to Union Territories like Chandigarh.

Q3. What happened to Article 370 in this process? A day before the Reorganisation Act took effect, Presidential Order C.O. 273 (6 August 2019) declared that all clauses of Article 370 would cease to be operative except a reworded clause applying the entire Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir without modification.

Q4. Which court has jurisdiction over Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh? The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir continues as a common High Court for both Union Territories, as provided in the Act.

Q5. How many States and Union Territories does India have after this reorganisation? 28 States and 8 Union Territories, as reflected in the amended First Schedule to the Constitution.

Quick Revision

• J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019 — effective 31 October 2019.
• Created two UTs: Jammu and Kashmir (with legislature) and Ladakh (without legislature).
• C.O. 272 (5 August 2019): applied full Constitution to J&K.
• C.O. 273 (6 August 2019): rendered Article 370 inoperative except one reworded clause.
• J&K Legislative Council abolished; only six States now bicameral.
• Common High Court retained for J&K and Ladakh.
• First Schedule amended: J&K State entry deleted; UT entries renumbered.
• India now has 28 States and 8 Union Territories.

Sources

• The Constitution of India — First Schedule (legislative.gov.in)
• Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 (34 of 2019) — legislative.gov.in
• Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 — C.O. 272
• Declaration under Article 370(3) — C.O. 273

Further Reference

For deeper reading on this topic and the wider polity syllabus, these standard works are recommended:

• M. Laxmikanth, Indian Polity (McGraw Hill) — the standard UPSC handbook.
• D.D. Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of India (LexisNexis) — authoritative constitutional-law treatment.
• The Constitution of India — Bare Act — the official text.

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