Rahul Gandhi Urges PM Modi to Grant Statehood to Jammu & Kashmir, Include Ladakh in 6th Schedule

Congress MP and the leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking him to introduce a bill in the coming Monsoon Session of the Parliament to grant full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.

"We urge upon the Government to bring forward legislation in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament to grant full statehood to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir," Rahul Gandhi wrote to the Prime Minister.

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Rahul Gandhi further pointed out that PM Modi had already repeated several times, that the government was committed towards restoring statehood.

"Your good self has, on multiple occasions, personally reiterated the government's commitment to restoring statehood. In your interview in Bhubaneswar on 19 May 2024, you stated: "The restoration of statehood is a solemn promise we have made and we stand by it." Again, while addressing a rally in Srinagar on 19 September 2024, you reaffirmed: "We have said in Parliament that we will restore the region's statehood," Congress MP said.

Urging on demand of statehood by Jammu and Kashmir people, LoP said that this is the first time a state is down graded to Union Territory.

"For the past five years, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have consistently called for the restoration of full statehood. This demand is both legitimate and firmly grounded in their constitutional and democratic rights," he said.

"This is the first time a full-fledged state has been downgraded to a Union Territory following its bifurcation," he added.

In August 2019, the Central Government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi abrogated Article 370 of the Indian Constitution which meant special status of Jammu and Kashmir ceased and the state was bifurcated into two Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

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Besides, the government has also been requested by Rahul Gandhi to introduce a bill in incorporating the Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. He further said this move will fulfill the cultural, developmental, and political desire of Ladakh people.

"We request that the Government bring forward legislation to include the Union Territory of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution. This would be a significant step towards addressing the cultural, developmental, and political aspirations of the people of Ladakh, while safeguarding their rights, land, and identity," he wrote to PM Modi.

The sixth schedule of the constitution has the provisions which deal with the Administration of Tribal Areas in States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. The Sixth Schedule entails the governance of some tribal territories as autonomous systems.

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