A curious disjunction prevails between how different domains of the polity are oriented to the Article 370 controversy. It has been more than a week since the Modi government moved to nullify a part of the Constitution, ending the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and splitting the state into two Union territories. Always a controversial part of the statute, its negation too came in a set of dramatic moves on which consensus is elusive. An inevitable legal challenge looms, not to speak of consent on the ground—and sections of the Opposition are ranged in dissent too. But one striking aspect missed no one: the way many regional and smaller parties backed the government move, enabling its smooth sailing through Parliament.
The Congress too is divided on the issue, with some leaders preferring to not remain isolated on what’s being painted as another ‘nationalist’ issue—a heads-I-win-tails-you-lose gambit from the BJP. But away from the spotlight, the reverberations are being felt in other parties too—the main regional parties...
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