Clock cannot be set back in J&K but review Central laws: Interlocutors

New Delhi, May 24 (PTI) Ruling out a return to the pre-1953 position, India government's interlocutors have recommended setting up of a Constitutional Committee to review all Acts and Articles of the Constitution of India extended to Jammu and Kashmir and upholding of Article 370. The report of the interlocutors -- Dileep Padgaonkar, Radha Kumar and M M Ansari -- underlined that "the clock cannot be set back" but felt that the 'erosion' of the special status conferred under Article 370 to the state over decades needed to be "re-appraised" to give it more powers. In their 176-page report, made public today, they have called for a review of all Central Acts and all Articles of the Constitution of India extended to the state after the 1952 Delhi agreement which also gave special status to the state under Article 370. "This does not mean a pure and simple return to the pre-1953 situation. The clock cannot be set back. Instead, the group wants such a review to take into full account the changes that have taken place in the last six decades," the report said. In the pre-1953 era, the Centre's jurisdiction was mainly restricted to Defence, External Affairs, Communication and Finance. The 1952 agreement between the Centre and J&K prime minister Sheikh Abdullah enabled extension of all the central acts, Articles of Constitution of India including Supreme Court and hoisting of Indian tri-colour along with the state flag. Significantly, the state legislative assembly passed a resolution in 2000 demanding among other things rescinding of all central legislation except Defence, Finance, Telecom and External Affairs, which was rejected by the Central Government. In a move aimed at strengthening of Article 370, the interlocutors report has sought deletion of the word 'temporary' from its heading in the Constitution and replacing it with 'special' as has been used in Article 371 in the case of some states. A similar recommendation was made in the autonomy resolution of the state Assembly. Padgaonkar later said that interlocutors have not recommended abolition of Article 370. "What we have said is that we are not inventing something. Under article 371 there are several states of the Union which have been designated as special category states. "We have just said that you remove the word temporary as regards J and K and use the word special as it is being done in the case of several states. We have listed the state which come under the category of special states. Instead of temporary, we wanted to put the word special in line with what is being done with the other states." The interlocutors have recommended status quo in the use of nomenclatures in English of Governor and Chief Minister and equivalent nomenclatures in Urdu may be used. Until 1965, the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir was addressed as 'Wazir-e-Azam' (Prime Minister) and the Governor as 'Sadar-e-Riyasat' (President). The report proposed a 'New Compact' with the people of Jammu and Kashmir, having three components -- political, economic and social and cultural -- forming a single package which cannot be accepted on a selective basis. Under the political component, the report deals with Centre-State relations and internal devolution of powers and suggests a road map listing confidence-building measures that includes review of Disturbed Areas Act and re-appraisal of application of the controversial Armed Forces (Sepcial Powers) Act (AFSPA). The report, which was handed over to Home Minister P Chidambaram on October 12 last year, also favoured resumption of the dialogue process between the Centre and Hurriyat Conference "at the earliest". This should yield visible outcomes and be made interruptible, it said. To build on the consensus that exists in the state, the interlocutors have recommended that a Constitutional Committee (CC) be set up to review all central acts and Articles of the Constitution of India extended to the state after the signing of 1952 agreement. The report also says that no more central laws and Articles of the Constitution should be extended to the state by Presidential order. It also suggested that Parliament will make no laws applicable to the state unless it relates to the country's internal and external security and its vital economic interests, especially in the areas of energy and access to water resources. Holding that a broad consensus existed on a political settlement in the state through a dialogue between all stake-holders including those who are not part of the mainstream, the three-member group has recommended that Jammu and Kashmir should function as a single entity. The report said the state assembly will submit three names to the President to the post of Governor who will be appointed by the President. It also suggested that there should be no change in Article 356 and if the state government is dismissed, elections should be held within three months. Interestingly the Group suggests that for internal emergency, prior consultations with the state government is required. The report recommends that the Constitutional Committee to review all Acts and Articles of the Constitution of India extended to Jammu and Kashmir and upholding of Article 370 should be headed by an eminent personality who enjoys the esteem of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and of the people of the India as a whole. It should include as its members Constitutional experts who enjoy confidence of all major stake holders. The CC's conclusions, to be reached within six months, will be binding on "all of them". The interlocutors group has said that the CC shall be mandated to conduct its review bearing in mind the dual character of Jammu and Kashmir -- being a constituent unit of Indian Union and enjoying a special status under Article 370 of the Constitution -- and the dual character of the people -- state subjects as well as Indian citizens. "The review will, therefore, have to determine whether - and to what extent - the Central Acts and Articles of Constitution of India, extended with or without amendment to the state, have dented Jammu and Kashmir's special status and abridged the state government's powers to cater to welfare of its people," the report said. Headed by senior Indian journalist Dileep Padgaonkar and with Central Information Commissioner MM Ansari and academician Radha Kumar as the two other members, the group had been appointed on 13 October 2010 with a mandate to explore through interaction with the entire political spectrum a way forward that truly reflects the aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, specially the youth. The group submitted its report on 12 October 2011. The report was made public today. PTI