Srinagar: Yeh Modi hai, vada karta hai toh nibhata hai (This is Modi, if he makes a promise, he keeps it).
On 13 January 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi—referring to himself in the third person at the inauguration of a Himalayan tunnel—responded to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) chief minister Omar Abdullah’s reminder to make good his promise to restore statehood to the union territory.
“The right things are going to happen at the right time,” Modi continued. But if and when statehood is restored, Abdullah’s authority as chief minister will continue to be greatly diminished from his last tenure, which ended in 2014.
Over the six years since the state assembly was dissolved, the union government has taken away chief ministerial powers in J&K, and statehood is unlikely to change that situation.
Abdullah can no longer transfer officers from the all-India services—including the Indian Police Service, Indian Forest Service, or Indian Administrative Service—approve or intervene in anti-corruption investigations, or make decisions related to legal proceedings, such as approving charges or directing investigations and prosecutions in criminal cases.
Since Mehbooba Mufti was forced out as chief minister on 19 June 2018, Article 370 of the Constitution—which in 1949 gave J&K the right to a separate constitution, a state flag, and autonomy over administration—was abrogated.
The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act of 2019, stripped the region of its statehood, dividing it into two union territories—J&K and Ladakh.
The newly elected head of the union territory of J&K no longer has jurisdiction over major important functions, such as police, law and order, financial management, prisons and key administrative matters, according to our analysis.
Areas such as police and public order, all-India services, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the State Investigation Agency (SIA), the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Forensic Science Laboratory, and prisons and financial management no longer fall under the CM's jurisdiction.
This has left the CM with powers equivalent, some said, to the head of a municipal corporation or a glorified sarpanch (head of a village council), with limited authority to govern the state effectively.
Political analyst, lawyer and human rights activist Sheikh Showkat Hussain described the CM as an "elevated mayor" of a municipal corporation.
Prashant Bhushan, a senior advocate in the Supreme Court of India, said, “As far as the union territory is concerned, it does not have the power to make laws for the territory, unless statehood is restored in accordance with the assurance given by the central government.”
J&K lieutenant governor, Manoj Sinha, in his address to the newly formed assembly’s first session, on 4 November 2024, called for the restoration of statehood for the union territory.
Here are six reasons why the newly elected J&K government will govern in New Delhi’s shadow.
1) Union Territories Are Controlled By The Centre
Unlike states, union territories have truncated legislative powers and are governed by Article 239 of the Indian Constitution, which states that "every union territory shall be administered by the President, acting, to such extent as he thinks fit, through an administrator”.
In J&K, the administrator is the lieutenant governor, who enjoys overriding authority over the legislature.
Experts, such as Zaffar Shah, senior advocate, Srinagar High Court, have said that the legislature of J&K is entirely at the mercy of the lieutenant governor, for funds or passing laws. They argue that the shadow of the lieutenant governor—and by extension the union government—will hamper addressing the aspirations of the electorate who voted in the new government.
Colin Gonsalves, senior advocate, Supreme Court of India, told Article 14 that the Central government had “completely taken away the right of the people of Kashmir to some kind of independence”.
“The gap between the people of Kashmir and the central government is not going to narrow,” he added. “Instead, it will continue to widen.”
Nayeema Mehjoor, journalist and former news editor of BBC Urdu said that the elected government of J&K would remain “in the shadows” of the union government, unless statehood was restored.
“It is a sort of municipality election where the role of the elected government is disempowered,” said Mehjoor. “Although chief minister Omar Abdullah has taken oath, nothing seems to change, as it is an autocratic form of government where absolute powers are vested under the lieutenant governor.”
2) No Authority Over Police & Public Order
Security and law enforcement have always been central to governance in J&K, given the region’s bloody history of insurgency. However, under the J&K Reorganisation Act, control over police and public order lies exclusively with the lieutenant governor.
The lieutenant governor continues to head the unified headquarters, a body established to oversee and manage security operations in the region.
The lieutenant governor also chairs all counter-terrorism strategy meetings, involving the heads of the army, central paramilitary forces, central and state intelligence agencies, and the J&K police.
According to section 32(1) of the Act, the state assembly can make laws on matters in the state list—61 subjects that state governments usually control—except "public order" and "police" (items 1 and 2 in the state list).
Yavar Ramazan, a lawyer practising at the Srinagar High Court, said, “If the elected government has no authority over police, public order or public policy, can it really function as a government?”
Gonsalves, the Supreme Court lawyer, argued that the home minister of India would be “totally in control” of law and order.
"There will always be a power struggle between the Kashmiri people and the central government,” said Gonsalves. He added that "the killings, atrocities, disappearances will continue as before”, as the state government would not have the ability to control law and order.
“The chief minister's chair is no longer a seat of power,” said Ramazan. “The real authority lies with the lieutenant governor, and the CM now appears to be managing municipal affairs rather than governing a historically significant region.”
3) Parliament’s Supremacy In Legislative Matters
“Nothing in sub-section (1) shall derogate from the powers conferred on Parliament by the Constitution to make laws with respect to any matter for the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or any part thereof,” reads section 32(2) of the Reorganisation Act.
This means that the union government will always have the final say when it comes to making laws for J&K, and has the power to override those passed by the legislative assembly.
Section 35 of the Reorganisation Act, says that if any law passed by the J&K assembly is in opposition to a law passed by the Indian Parliament before and after it, the law passed by the Parliament shall take precedence.
This grants the lieutenant governor absolute authority and reduces the assembly's power to one that can be revoked at any moment, said experts.
Unlike J&K, Nagaland and Mizoram continue to enjoy special status under Article 371A and 371G respectively.
The two north-eastern states retain autonomy over cultural practices, customary laws and land ownership. J&K had broader autonomy, including its own constitution and flag, before the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
"Mizoram and J&K share identity-driven conflicts, while Nagaland’s unique status, established in 1963, grants autonomy over land, customs, and laws under Article 371A,” said Insha Ayoub, a research scholar from Kashmir. “Mizoram, under Article 371G, has similar protections, requiring state assembly consent for key legislation."
Aasif Abdullah, a peace and conflict researcher at a J&K university, said, “At least Nagaland-like provisions should be restored for J&K to safeguard its identity and limit Parliament’s legislative power without state consent.”
4) Loss Of Control Over Union & Concurrent Lists
Before August 2019, J&K’s legislature had exclusive powers over issues mentioned in the union and concurrent lists of the Constitution, barring defense, foreign affairs, and communications.
The union list consists of 97 subjects, such as defence, foreign affairs and citizenship, over which Parliament has exclusive legislative powers, while the concurrent list has 52 subjects, on which both union and state governments can create laws.
Article 370 specified that the Parliament could only make laws on matters in the union list and the concurrent list decided “in consultation with the Government of the State” and “with the concurrence of the Government of the State”.
This privilege was revoked with the abrogation of Article 370.
Before that happened, 94 of the 97 entries in the union list applied to J&K, 260 of the 395 Articles of the Constitution as well as seven of the 12 schedules of the Constitution.
The legislative assembly of J&K no longer has a say over any subjects in the union list through the previous provisions of ‘concurrence’ and ‘consultation’.
Yavar Ramazan said the Constitution, in its essence, provides for an "indestructible union of indestructible states", where the Centre and the states are envisioned to exist on an equal footing.
Citing the landmark judgment in S.R. Bommai vs Union of India (1994), he said the Supreme Court emphasized the importance of preserving the powers of the states in its ruling that held that states are not "mere appendages" of the Centre.
5) Centralised Bureaucracy & Appointments
The administration of J&K is now heavily centralised, with the lieutenant governor holding decisive power over bureaucratic appointments, including, as we said, to the All India Services and law enforcement agencies.
On 12 July 2024, the union ministry of home affairs expanded the lieutenant governor’s authority through an executive notification, amending the Transaction of Business Rules.
Under the revised rules, the lieutenant governor gained control over the J&K police, including the CID and SIA, and other key agencies, such as the Anti-Corruption Bureau, Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Prisons, and the Forensic Science Laboratory.
The lieutenant governor also retains approval for the appointment of the advocate general and other law officers in the region. This gives New Delhi full control over key areas of governance.
In the three months since the J&K CM was sworn in, his office has faced multiple disputes with the lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha.
In November 2024, the lieutenant governor invoked Article 311 to terminate two government employees, accusing them of being a threat to the "security of the state" without a departmental inquiry. The CM's office had previously opposed such actions and had promised to review cases of employees terminated under Article 311.
In December 2024, Sinha extended the tenure of the vice-chancellors of the University of Jammu and the Sher-I-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, reportedly without consulting the CM’s office.
Another point of disagreement was the continuation of the J&K advocate general (AG) DC Raina. CM Abdullah had rejected the AG’s resignation and asked him to continue but could not because the lieutenant governor did not provide approval, Greater Kashmir, a newspaper, reported in December 2024
While the J&K lieutenant governor has the same powers as the Delhi lieutenant governor, he also has control over prisons, which, in Delhi, are typically managed by the elected government.
Experts said that J&K might face recurring conflict between the elected government and the lieutenant governor, similar to those seen in Delhi.
The governance of Delhi has witnessed repeated clashes between the elected government, and the lieutenant governor, particularly over administrative control and jurisdictional authority.
Notable instances include disputes over the control of services, with the Supreme Court granting the Delhi government legislative and executive powers over services in May 2023, following years of contention.
Conflicts have arisen over policy implementations and the appointment of officials which reflects deep-rooted tensions between the two power centers.
In Delhi, the elected government did not have control over the transfer and posting of key officials, especially police officers and bureaucrats. It found itself unable to appoint or transfer officials based on its governance priorities.
This limitation created tensions between the Delhi government and the lieutenant governor, as it hindered the CM’s ability to make effective administrative decisions.
Shashidhar Nanjundaiah, dean of the school of media at Mahindra University, Hyderabad, said, “The inability of the elected government to transfer central officials remains one of the contentious issues in Delhi and is likely to be so in Jammu and Kashmir.”
6) Money From New Delhi
J&K’s financial health has been significantly dependent on central government assistance.
In 2018-19, transfers from the union government, including the state's share in union taxes and duties and grants-in-aid, constituted 72.33% of the state's revenue.
J&K reported a fiscal deficit of Rs 13,122 crore for the financial year 2023-24, 5.36% of the gross state domestic product, higher than the 3% ceiling put in place by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003.
In the 2024-25 budget, the union government allocated a special package of Rs 17,000 crore to the union territory, which includes Rs 12,000 crore to pay J&K police salaries, pensions, and other expenses, and an additional Rs 5,000 crore as central assistance.
This support is expected to reduce the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio to 3.0% in the 2024-25 financial year.
As section 67 of the Reorganisation Act says, the union territory now has a 'consolidated fund,' which includes all revenue, grants, and loans received from both the union territory administration and the union government.
However, the management of this fund and any withdrawals from it are subject to rules set by the lieutenant governor.
Section 36 of the Reorganisation Act states that any bill or amendment involving financial issues, such as taxes or expenditures, cannot be introduced in the legislative assembly without the lieutenant governor’s recommendation.
The legislative assembly now requires the lieutenant governor’s approval to pass any law or amendment related to financial matters.
Even bills passed by the assembly in areas within its jurisdiction, such as local government institutions, municipal corporations, public health, sanitation, hospitals, and land revenue, require the lieutenant governor’s approval before becoming law.
(Junaid Manzoor Dar and Shaheen Mursal are independent journalists.)
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