The Indian government has announced scrapping Article 370 of the Constitution, which grants a special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir is the only Indian state where Muslims constitute a majority. The state used to enjoy special autonomy in India. Before taking effect in its territory all laws passed by the central government (except for those concerning defense, external relations and some others) were to be approved by the local assembly. People from other states of India were prohibited from purchasing land plots there. Jammu and Kashmir had its own flag and a number of other privileges. Under the government’s proposal, Jammu and Kashmir will lose its status of a state and will become a union territory.
Kashmir under curfew: India rescinds region's special status
The Indian government announced scrapping Article 370 of the Constitution, which grants a special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir
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An Indian Paramilitary soldier ordering a Kashmiri to lift his robe before frisking him during curfew in Srinagar, Kashmir
© AP Photo/Dar Yasin The Indian government has announced scrapping Article 370 of the Constitution, which grants a special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Photo: Indian Paramilitary soldiers stand guard during curfew in Srinagar, Kashmir
© AP Photo/Dar Yasin Indian people carrying their luggage as they walk toward a railway station during a curfew in Jammu, Kashmir
© EPA-EFE/JAIPAL SINGH Indian migrant labourers who were working in Kashmir valley, flee from Kashmir as they board a train through an emergency window to get a seat to leave for their homes at a railway station in Jammu, Kashmir
© EPA-EFE/JAIPAL SINGH Indian migrant workers crowding outside the government transport yard to buy bus tickets to leave the region, during curfew in Srinagar, Kashmir
© AP Photo/ Dar Yasin Indian Paramilitary soldiers standing guard during curfew in Srinagar, Kashmir
© AP Photo/Dar Yasin Jammu and Kashmir is the only Indian state where Muslims constitute a majority
© EPA-EFE/FAROOQ KHAN Jammu and Kashmir used to enjoy special autonomy in India
© EPA-EFE/FAROOQ KHAN Jammu and Kashmir had its own flag and a number of other privilege
© EPA-EFE/FAROOQ KHAN Under the government’s proposal, Jammu and Kashmir will lose its status of a state and will become a union territory
© EPA-EFE/FAROOQ KHAN A deserted street is seen through a barbwire set up as blockade during curfew in Srinagar, Kashmir
© AP Photo/Dar Yasin