SC expresses anguish over filing of defective petitions on Article 370

NEW DELHI: A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the petition by advocate M L Sharma challenging the scrapping of Article 370 has "no meaning".
"What kind of petition is this? It could have been dismissed but there are 5 other pleas with the registry," the bench also comprising S A Bobde and S A Najeer said. The bench during the hearing identified that petitions on Jammu and Kashmir had one or the other defect.
"You are not praying for setting aside the Presidential order. What is the prayer it is not clear. It can be dismissed on technical grounds," the bench said and added that there were five other petitions in the registry which are defective.
The CJI said he spent 30 minutes reading the petition on Article 370 but could not make out anything.
The apex court asked lawyers to cure defects in their six petitions on Article 370 and adjourned the hearing.
The CJI also pulled up Kashmiri advocate Shabir Shakil also for for filing a similar defective application.
It also took up the plea filed by Kashmir Times executive editor Anuradha Bhasin, seeking relaxation of media movement in the valley and the communication shutdown.
"I have read in the media report that restrictions on landline and broadline are likely to be removed by the evening today," the CJI said.
Attorney General KK Venugopal countered this by saying that restrictions has been eased Kashmir Times has been publishing its edition from Jammu without any curbs.
He said that the petition appears to be a motivated plea and therefore they have jumped the gun to come to a conclusion and that there was a complete communication lockdown in the valley.
Centre reiterated that normalcy will be restored in J&K in a few days and pleaded the SC to not intervene at this stage on the basis pleas.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta seconded Venugopal on the security situation in the valley.
"Security agencies are taking stock of the situation and the court must trust its agencies," Mehta said.
The top court has adjourned the matter putting on the record that petitions were defective on technical aspect.
The top court said that these petitions will be listed next week after the order of Chief Justice on the administrative side.
The bench also noted that it was hearing the petition on Article 370 by breaking the combination of judges hearing the sensitive Ayodhya matter.