Part One – Union and its Territories
- Articles 1 to 4 of constitution constitute with the UNION AND ITs TERRITORY
Article 1
- India, that is Bharat, is a Union of States. Here, territory includes states, acquired territories andunion territories. This can be easily understood as the following: India is an indestructible union ofdestructible states.
Article 2
- Admission or Establishment of new States into the territories of India
- Procedure – By Parliament through a Simple Majority
Simple Majority – More than 50% of members present and voting
Article 3
Change in the name and territorial boundaries of existing territories of India
Procedure – Prior permission of the President + Parliament by a Simple Majority + Consult the State
concerned.
Here, the procedure can begin from the state concerned (who wants to change its own boundary or name) or from the Union legislature.
- Also, the consent of the state concerned is not a necessity
which means that the Parliament can proceed with the change in name or boundary even without
the consent of the state. It is further emphasized that consult is not the same as consent.
Article 4
- Changes made under A2 and A3 will result into an amendment of the first and the fourth
schedule. Changes made under A2 and A3 are not considered as federal changes and hence, they do not need an amendment under A368. - Current – Conversion of State of J&K into UT of J&K and UT of Ladakh. (A370, A35A); Merger of UT of Daman and Diu and UT of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
reorganization of states
1.June 1948-Dec 1948 – SK DHAR COMMISSION
administrative efficiency is more important than mere linguistic similarity for reorganization
2.Dec 1948-April 1949 –(Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhai Patel, Pattabhi Sitarammayya) JVP
Concept of one state one language was not accepted
Oct 1953 – Andhra Pradesh became the first state to be made on the basis of same language following the protest of Telugu speaking people. Post the 56 days hunger strike and eventual death of their leader, Potti Sriramullu Government formed Andhra Pradesh.
3.Dec 1953-Sept 1955 FAZL ALI COMMISSION
The following must be kept in mind while forming a
state :
a. Preservation and promotion of unity and security
b. Cultural and linguistic homogeneity
c. Administrative, Financial and Economic conditions
d. Plan and Promote the welfare of the people.
State Reorganisation Act, 1956
it came into being which resulted in the formation of 14 states and 6 Union Territories. 7th Amendment Act, 1956 removed the distinction of Part A,B,C,D states (classification during the British era)
REORGANISATION OF STATES
- 1960 – Maharashtra and Gujarat
- 1961 – Dadra and Nagar Haveli (It was under the Portuguese till 1954, after which it was ruled by its own people till 1961 and in 1961 it was acquired by India and converted into a UT), Goa and Daman and Diu were acquired.
- 1962 – Puducherry (Till 1954 it was under French after which it was handed over to India. India kept it as an ‘acquired territory’ till 1962 and in 1962 it was made a UT)
- 1963 – Nagaland (carved out of Assam)
- 1966 – Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and hilly areas were merged with the UT of Himachal Pradesh. Shah Commission recommended that Punjabi speaking people should be in Punjab and Hindi speaking in Haryana
- 1971 – UT of Himachal Pradesh was converted to State of Himachal Pradesh
- 1972 – UT of Manipur, UT of Tripura and Sub-State of Meghalaya was given statehood. New UT of Mizoram and UT of Arunachal Pradesh were formed. Here, sub state of Meghalaya meant that it was a part of Assam but it had its own Council of Ministers and Legislature.
- 1975 – Sikkim was given complete statehood. Till 1947 it was a British protectorate and in 1947 it became an Indian Protectorate. It was ruled by the Chogyals. In 1974, Sikkim was made an associate state of India and provisions were made under A.2A and 10th Schedule. However, in 1975 through a referendum, complete statehood was given to Sikkim.
- 1987 – Statehood was given to Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa
- 2000 – Chattisgarh, Uttrakhand and Jharkhand were carved out of MP, UP and Bihar
- 2014 – Telangana was carved out of Andhra Pradesh
- 2019 – State of J&K was converted into UT of J&K and UT of Ladakh
- 2020 – Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu were merged to form Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
PROVISIONS USED TO REORGANISE JAMMU AND KASHMIR
article 370
- Temporary provisions with respect to the State of Jammu and Kashmir (3) Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this article, the President may, by public notification, declare that this article shall cease to be operative or shall be operative only with such exceptions and modifications and from such date as he may specify: Provided that the recommendation of the Constituent Assembly of the State referred to in clause ( 2 ) shall be necessary before the President issues such a notification
when applying provisions of the Indian Constitution to J&K, the President effected one
‘modification’— to Article 367. Article 367 is the interpretation clause of the Constitution. In Article367, the Presidential Order inserts a new sub-clause (4)(d) which states that the words “Constituent Assembly” in Article 370(3) must be read as “Legislative Assembly of the State”. What does this mean? The government has sought to overcome the problem of the Constituent Assembly not having abrogated Article 370 by requiring that “Constituent Assembly” in Article 370(3) be read as the J&K Assembly. By doing so, it now becomes possible for the J&K Assembly to do what the Constituent Assembly did not i.e. recommend the abrogation of Article 370. To be clear, the President has not amended Article370(3) itself because he does not have the power to do so. He can only modify other provisions of the Constitution when making them applicable to J&K.
Article 35A
- allows the Jammu and Kashmir legislature to define permanent residents of the state. It
was inserted through the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954, which was issued by President Rajendra Prasad under Article 370, on the the advice of the Nehru-led Union Government.)When the J&K Constitution was adopted in 1956, it defined a permanent resident as someone who was a state subject on May 14, 1954, or who has been a resident of the state for 10 years, and has lawfully acquired immovable property. Saving of laws with respect to permanent residents and their rights, —
Notwithstanding anything contained in this Constitution, no existing law in force in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, and no law hereafter enacted by the Legislature of the State,—
A) Defining the classes of persons who are, or shall be, permanent residents of the State of Jammu & Kashmir; or
B) Conferring on such permanent residents any special rights and privileges or imposing upon other persons any restrictions as respects
1) Employment under the State Government.
2) Acquisition of immovable property in the State
3) Settlement in the State; or
4) Right to scholarships and such other forms of aid as the State Government may provide, shall be void on the ground that it is inconsistent with or takes away or abridges any rights conferred on the other citizens of India by any provision of this Part.”
J AND K REORGANISATION ACT, 2019-Reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir
The Bill reorganises the state of Jammu and Kashmir into the the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with a legislature, and (ii) the Union Territory of Ladakh without a legislature. The Union Territory of Ladakh will comprise Kargil and Leh districts, and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will comprise the remaining territories of the existing state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Lieutenant Governor
- The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will be administered by the President, through an administrator appointed by him known as the Lieutenant Governor. The Union Territory of Ladakh will be administered by the President, through a Lieutenant Governor appointed by him.
Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir
- The Bill provides for a Legislative Assembly for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The total number of seats in the Assembly will be 107. Of these, 24 seats will remain vacant on account of certain areas of Jammu and Kashmir being under the occupation of Pakistan. Further, seats will be reserved in the Assembly for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to their population in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. In addition, the Lieutenant Governor may nominate two members to the Legislative Assembly to give representation to women, if they are not adequately represented.The Assembly will have a term of five years, and the Lieutenant Governor must summon the Assembly at least once in six months. The Legislative Assembly may make laws for any part of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir related to: (i) any matters specified in the State List of the Constitution, except “Police” and “Public Order”, and (ii) any matter in the Concurrent List applicable to Union Territories. Further, Parliament will have the power to make laws in relation to any matter for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Council of Ministers
- The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will have a Council of Ministers of
not more than ten percent of the total number of members in the Assembly. The Council will aide and advise the Lieutenant Governor on matters that the Assembly has powers to make laws. The Chief Minister will communicate all decisions of the Council to the Lieutenant Governor.
High Court
- The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir will be the common High Court for the Union
Territories of Ladakh, and Jammu and Kashmir. Further, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir . will have an Advocate General to provide legal advice to the government of the Union Territory. Legislative Council: The Legislative Council of the state of Jammu and Kashmir will be abolished. Upon dissolution, all Bills pending in the Council will lapse.
Advisory Committees
- The central government will appoint Advisory Committees, for various purposes, including: (i) distribution of assets and liabilities of corporations of the state of Jammu and Kashmir between the two Union Territories, (ii) issues related to the generation and supply of electricity and water, and (iii) issues related to the Jammu and Kashmir State Financial Corporation. These Committees must submit their reports within six months to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, who must act on these recommendations within 30 days.
- Extent of laws: The Schedule lists 106 central laws that will be made applicable to Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on a date notified by the central government. These include the Aadhaar Act, 2016, the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the Right to Education Act, 2009. Further, it repeals 153 state laws of Jammu and Kashmir. In addition, 166 state laws will remain in force, and seven laws will be applicable with amendments. These amendments include lifting of prohibitions on lease of land to persons who are not permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir.