Making of the Jammu & Kashmir State Constitution

JK Constituent Assembly refers to the elected body that framed a separate Constitution for the erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir — a unique arrangement under which J&K, alone among the States of the Union, had its own State Constitution alongside the Constitution of India, until the 2019 reorganisation ended this arrangement.

Why Jammu & Kashmir Needed Its Own Constituent Assembly

Unlike other princely states, which were absorbed into the constitutional structure laid down in Part VI of the Constitution of India, Jammu & Kashmir's accession — governed by Article 370 — came with an understanding that the State's own future relationship with the Union, and its internal constitution, would be finally settled by an elected Constituent Assembly of the State's own people, not by simply extending India's Constitution wholesale. Article 370 itself provided that the President's power to apply the Constitution of India to the State, or to modify Article 370, would operate only in consultation with, or on the recommendation of, this State Constituent Assembly.

Pending that decision, an interim arrangement applied: the Constitution (Application to Jammu & Kashmir) Order, 1950, extended Union legislative competence over J&K only to the subjects covered by the Instrument of Accession — Defence, Foreign Affairs, and Communications.

Formation of the Constituent Assembly and the End of Princely Rule

The people of Jammu & Kashmir elected a sovereign Constituent Assembly for the State, which met for the first time on 31 October 1951. Its first official act was to end the hereditary rule of the Maharaja, consistent with the Government of India's accession condition that the Maharaja introduce popular government.

Even before the Assembly convened, the Maharaja had invited Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, President of the All Jammu & Kashmir National Conference, to form an interim government, which later became a full Cabinet with Abdullah as the first Prime Minister of the State. The Abdullah government pressed for the Maharaja's abdication, and in June 1949 Maharaja Hari Singh abdicated in favour of his son, Yuvraj Karan Singh. The Constituent Assembly elected Karan Singh to the newly created office of "Sadar-i-Riyasat" (Head of State) — an elected office replacing hereditary princely rule, formally recognised by a Presidential Declaration under Article 370(3) on 15 November 1952. As early as November 1951, the Assembly had also passed the Jammu & Kashmir Constitution (Amendment) Act, giving legal recognition to this transfer of power from the Maharaja to the elected Sadar-i-Riyasat.

The Delhi Agreement and Ratification of Accession

In June 1952, the Government of India and the State Government reached the Delhi Agreement, settling the subjects over which the Union would have jurisdiction pending the Constituent Assembly's final decision. Early in 1954, the Constituent Assembly ratified both the State's Accession to India and the terms of the Delhi Agreement. The President then issued the Constitution (Application to Jammu & Kashmir) Order, 1954, in force from 14 May 1954, superseding the 1950 Order. This Order extended Union jurisdiction to broadly all Union subjects under the Constitution of India, subject to certain modifications, but deliberately left one matter untouched: the internal constitution of the State Government, which remained the task of the State's own Constituent Assembly.

Drafting and Adoption of the State Constitution

With the Union-State relationship settled, the Assembly turned to drafting the State's internal Constitution. It set up several committees, and in October 1956 its Drafting Committee presented the Draft Constitution. After discussion, this was adopted and came into force on 26 January 1957 — giving J&K the distinction of being the only State with its own separate Constitution, in place of the Part VI provisions that governed every other State (Article 152's definition of "State" for Part VI purposes specifically excluded Jammu & Kashmir).

Key Features of the 1957 State Constitution

• It declared Jammu & Kashmir to be "an integral part of the Union of India."
• Its defined territory comprised all territory that was under the sovereignty or suzerainty of the Ruler as on 15 August 1947 — which, on paper, included the Pakistan-occupied area of the State.
• Its executive and legislative powers extended to all matters except those on which Parliament had power to legislate for the State under the Constitution of India.
• Unlike other States, whose Governor is appointed by the President, the State's original Head of State — the Sadar-i-Riyasat — was elected by the State Legislative Assembly. The Sixth Amendment Act, 1965 removed this anomaly, renaming the office "Governor" and making Presidential appointment the rule, as in other States.
• The bicameral Legislature comprised a 100-member directly elected Legislative Assembly (plus two women members nominated by the Governor, with 24 seats vacant for Pakistan-occupied areas) and a 36-member Legislative Council.
• High Court judges were appointed by the President after consulting the Chief Justice of India and the Governor; civil servants held office at the Governor's pleasure, as elsewhere.

The End of the State Constitution (2019)

The separate constitutional arrangement lasted until 2019. On 6 August 2019, acting under Article 370(3), the President declared that all clauses of Article 370 would cease to be operative except a substituted clause applying the entire Constitution of India to Jammu & Kashmir without modification or exception — overriding any provision of the State's own Constitution. This was accompanied by the Constitution (Application to Jammu & Kashmir) Order, 2019 (superseding the 1954 Order) and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which split the former State into the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir (with a Legislature) and the Union Territory of Ladakh — ending the 1957 State Constitution's operation.

Making of the J&K State Constitution — Timeline

UPSC Relevance

Prelims

• J&K's Constituent Assembly first met on 31 October 1951; the State Constitution came into force on 26 January 1957.
• Article 152's definition of "State" for Part VI purposes excluded Jammu & Kashmir — the constitutional basis for its separate State Constitution.
• The Sixth Amendment Act, 1965 changed the title Sadar-i-Riyasat to Governor.

Mains

• The making of the J&K State Constitution illustrates how Article 370 created an asymmetric federal arrangement, with the State's own elected Constituent Assembly — rather than Parliament alone — settling both the Union-State relationship and the State's internal constitutional structure, an arrangement that was formally ended by the 2019 reorganisation.

FAQ

Q1. When did the Jammu & Kashmir Constituent Assembly first meet? On 31 October 1951.

Q2. When did the J&K State Constitution come into force? On 26 January 1957, after being adopted by the Constituent Assembly following the Drafting Committee's October 1956 draft.

Q3. What was the office of Sadar-i-Riyasat? It was the original title of the Head of State of Jammu & Kashmir, elected by the State Legislative Assembly (unlike Governors elsewhere, appointed by the President). It was renamed "Governor" by the Sixth Amendment Act, 1965.

Q4. What was the Delhi Agreement (1952)? An agreement settling the subjects over which the Union would have jurisdiction pending the Constituent Assembly's final decision — ratified by the Assembly in early 1954.

Q5. Why did the State Constitution stop applying? On 6 August 2019, a Presidential Declaration under Article 370(3) applied the entire Constitution of India to Jammu & Kashmir without modification, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 split the State into two Union Territories, ending the separate State Constitution.

Quick Revision

• Assembly first met 31 October 1951; ended hereditary princely rule as its first act.
• Hari Singh abdicated (June 1949) for Yuvraj Karan Singh, later elected Sadar-i-Riyasat.
• Delhi Agreement (1952) ratified by the Assembly in early 1954.
• 1954 Order extended most Union subjects but left the internal Constitution to the Assembly.
• State Constitution in force from 26 January 1957; Sadar-i-Riyasat renamed Governor in 1965.
• Article 370(3) Declaration and the 2019 Reorganisation Act ended its operation.

Sources

• The Constitution of India — Article 370 and related Orders, legislative.gov.in
• Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 — Ministry of Law and Justice notification
• Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 — legislative.gov.in

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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