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Updated: Aug 18, 2019 08:25 IST

A group of retired military officers and bureaucrats have filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Presidential order by which Article 370 of the Constitution which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir was abrogated.

The Union government abrogated Article 370 on August 5. A day earlier, on August 4, the government had shut down internet, telephone, and television services to deter any protests against the revocation of special status.

The petitioners are, Radha Kumar, a former member of the Home Ministry’s Group of Interlocutors for Jammu and Kashmir (2010- 11), Hindal Haidar Tyabji, a former IAS officer belonging to the Jammu and Kashmir cadre and Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Kapil Kak, who was also Deputy Director of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.

Major General (Retd) Ashok Kumar Mehta and Amitabha Pande, a former member of the Punjab cadre of IAS and Gopal Pillai, a former IAS officer of Kerala cadre who retired as Union Home Secretary in 2011 were also a part of the group of retired officers who have filed the petition.

The petition was drawn up by advocates Arjun Krishnan, Kaustubh Singh and Rajalakshmi Singh.

The petitioners have sought quashing of the Presidential order as well as the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Act, 2019.

This is the seventh petition filed in the Supreme Court challenging the abrogation of Article 370. Earlier, six other petitions have already been filed and are still pending before the apex court.