It will have catastrophic consequences for the subcontinent. GOIs intentions are clear. They want the territory of… https://t.co/rHGVrLjPGx — Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) 1564985176000

What a glorious day. Finally d martyrdom of thousands starting with Dr Shyam Prasad Mukharjee for compete integrati… https://t.co/ircGiQfkRI — Ram Madhav (@rammadhavbjp) 1564984514000

We congratulate the government for this bold initiative which was very much necessary in national interest includin… https://t.co/sHTCAZECuM — RSS (@RSSorg) 1564998852000

NEW DELHI: The government on Monday revoked Article 370 which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir and proposed that the state be bifurcated into two union territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh , provoking outrage from the NC and PDP and triumph from leaders of India's ruling BJP.Meeting a long-held promise of the BJP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah moved a resolution in the Rajya Sabha that Article 370 , which allowed Jammu and Kashmir to have its own Constitution, will no longer be applicable."The president on the recommendation of Parliament is pleased to declare as from 5th of August 2019, all clauses of the said Article 370 shall cease to be operative... ," stated the resolution moved by the Home minister.Shah also moved a bill proposing bifurcation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir division and Ladakh.Shah, who introduced the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation bill, said the union territory in Ladakh will have no legislature like Chandigarh. The other union territory of Jammu and Kashmir will have a legislature like Delhi and Puducherry.As soon as Shah made the announcement, members of the Congress, TMC and DMK squat on the floor of the House, one of the PDP members tore his clothes and then along with another PDP member tore copies of the Constitution, prompting Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to order that they be physically removed.When the House met, Naidu said he had used his discretionary powers to waive the requirement of the government to give advance notice and circulate a bill as the issue was of urgent national importance.Leader of the Opposition and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said the entire Kashmir Valley is under curfew and three former chief ministers of the state and political leaders have been placed under house arrest.He wanted the situation to be discussed first but Naidu allowed Shah to move the resolution.Shah moved the resolution to abolish Article 370 as well as the state reorganisation bill along with listed bills to extend reservation for economically weaker sections in educational institutions and government jobs in Jammu and Kashmir.The reorganisation bill provides for formation of union territory of Ladakh without legislature and a separate one for Jammu and Kashmir with legislature.While Naidu said only the bill for providing reservation is being moved now and the other would be done after it is circulated to members, the House in a voice vote approved the introduction.Later Naidu allowed Shah to re-introduce the resolution and the reorganisation bill, saying copies have now been circulated to members.But it was not put to vote and it was not immediately clear if the voice vote taken earlier was for all bills and resolution or only for the bill for reservation.Shah had moved the resolution and the bills together.But the introduction was opposed by Congress, TMC and DMK members who along with leaders in the House rushed into the well,They first shouted slogans and then squatted in the well of the House. Those who squat on the floor included Azad, Congress deputy leader Anand Sharma and TMC leader Derek O'Brien.Samajwadi Party (SP) members, however, did not join them in the well.Amid the ruckus, PDP members Nazir Ahmad Laway and Mir Mohammad Fayaz shouted slogans and tore posters. Laway even tore the 'kurta' he was wearing. Later as the protests heated up, the duo tore copies of the Constitution, prompting Naidu to order their eviction."The Indian Constitution is supreme. Nobody can do it," Naidu said as he named two members and ordered marshals to physically remove them from the House.Before the marshals could do that, BJP leader Vijay Goel tried to intervene but was pushed back.Naidu said the Indian Constitution is supreme and nobody has the right to tear copies of it."Tearing the Constitution in the House, shouting against India, will not be allowed. I will not just name (members) but also take action," he said.Azad said the opposition was not against the reservation bill but wanted the Kashmir situation to be discussed first.While the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said the government was "rectifying" the historical blunder of imposing Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said there were enough empirical evidence and precedence where the governments have in past circulated and got approved bills on the same day.Shah said the reservation bill will help provide economically weaker sections 10 per cent reservation in educational institutions and government jobs. This reservation will be besides existing reservation for SC, ST and OBC.Noting that in past 38 times bills have been circulated and passed on the same day, he said this will be "null and void" after the resolution for abolition of Article 370 is approved.Vaiko said the government was killing democracy."Emergency days have come back," he said."There is no emergency, only urgency," Naidu remarked.Azad said Article 370 was integral to Jammu and Kashmir joining India and added that lakhs of security personnel and civilians have lost their lives in the state during 70 years."I strongly condemn the act of two or three members of Parliament (to tear copies of Constitution), none were from our party. We stand by the Constitution of India," he said.He, however, said the BJP has murdered democracy.Shah retorted that people of Jammu and Kashmir were living in poverty and corruption because of Article 370.Three families have looted the state for years, he said adding Jammu and Kashmir acceded to India on October 27, 1947 but Article 370 came in 1949."It is not true that Jammu and Kashmir joined India because of Article 370 ," he said.Article 370 was always temporary and past governments did not remove it because of lack of political will and vote bank politics, he said.Shah in his resolution said, "...the President, on the recommendation of Parliament, is pleased to declare that, as from 5th of August, 2019, all clauses of the said article 370 shall cease to be operative except clause (1) thereof.""All provisions of this Constitution, as amended from time to time, without any modifications or exceptions, shall apply to the State of Jammu and Kashmir," it read.Article 370 of the Constitution granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir whereby provisions of the Constitution which are applicable to other states are not applicable to J&K.As per this article, except for defence, foreign affairs, finance and communications, Parliament needs the state government's concurrence for applying all other laws.It was introduced in the Constitution on October 17, 1949.The announcement, capping days of uncertainty in Jammu and Kashmir, led to an uproar, in the House and outside it too.India had failed Kashmir in keeping its promises, PDP chief and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufi said.She said the government's unilateral decision "to scrap Article 370" is illegal and unconstitutional.It will make India an occupational force in Jammu and Kashmir, Mehbooba said on Twitter."It will have catastrophic consequences for the subcontinent. GOIs intentions are clear. They want the territory of J&K by terrorising its people. India has failed Kashmir in keeping its promises," Mehbooba, who is under house arrest in Srinagar, said on Twitter."Not sure how long I'll be able to communicate. Is this the India we acceded to?" she asked.National Conference leader Omar Abdullah echoed her outrage, also labelling the government's move "unilateral"."Government of India (GOI)'s unilateral and shocking decisions today are a total betrayal of the trust that the people of Jammu & Kashmir had reposed in India when the state acceded to it in 1947. The decisions will have far-reaching and dangerous consequences. This is an aggression against people of the State as had been warned by an all-parties meeting in Srinagar yesterday," he said.The government, he said in a statement, had resorted to "deceit and stealth" to lay the ground for these disastrous decisions."Those of us who gave democratic voice to the people of Jammu & Kashmir, are incarcerated as lakhs of armed security personnel have been put on the ground... A long and tough battle lies ahead. We are ready for that," he said.The mood was triumphant in the BJP quarters.The government's move on Article 370, said senior party leader Arun Jaitley, is a monumental decision towards national integration.His party colleague Ram Madhav also hailed the decision."What a glorious day. Finally the martyrdom of thousands starting with Dr Shyam Prasad Mukherjee for complete integration of J&K into Indian Union is being honoured and the seven decade old demand of the entire nation being realised in front of our eyes; in our lifetime. Ever imagined?" he tweeted moments after Shah's announcement.Party spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said the move had opened the path of growth and development for Jammu and Kashmir.RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said the government's decisions on Jammu and Kashmir are "brave" and "very necessary" for the interest of the country, including Jammu and Kashmir.In a joint statement posted on the Twitter handle of the RSS, Bhagwat and his deputy Suresh Joshi said everyone should rise above their interests and political differences, and welcome and support the decision.Celebrations broke out the Shiv Sena headquarters in Mumbai's Dadar area. Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray dubbing it as a "moment of pride" and a "historic day" for the country.