India’s Supreme Court upheld the revocation of Kashmir’s autonomy

The 2019 declaration was “the culmination of the integration process and as such is a valid exercise of power,” the Supreme Court’s verdict said.

The withdrawal of Kashmir’s autonomy resulted in direct rule from New Delhi, mass arrests, a months-long total shutdown and blocked communications. In addition, India has strengthened its armed forces in the region to prevent the spread of protests.

Modi’s policies in Kashmir have been highly controversial, but widely welcomed elsewhere in India, and an insurgency that has claimed tens of thousands of lives over several decades has largely subsided.

The revocation of autonomy was contested by pro-Indian Kashmiri parties, the local bar association and individual litigants.

The Supreme Court upheld the removal of the region’s autonomy but said Jammu and Kashmir should be brought on par with all other Indian states as soon as possible, without separate autonomy rights.

The court ordered the state elections to be held by September 30 next year.

Modi hailed the Supreme Court’s decision, calling it historic.

The decision is “a beacon of hope, a promise of a brighter future and a testament to our shared resolve to build a stronger, more united India,” the Hindu nationalist prime minister wrote on the social network X.