The Congress leaders urged the Centre to introduce legislation during the upcoming Monsoon Session, also calling for Ladakh’s inclusion under the Sixth Schedule to protect the region’s cultural and land rights.
BY PC Bureau
New Delhi, July 16, 2025 — In a significant political move ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and his Rajya Sabha counterpart Mallikarjun Kharge have written a joint letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging immediate legislation to restore full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
The letter, dated July 16, strongly asserts that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have been demanding the return of statehood for the past five years and that their demand is “legitimate and firmly grounded in constitutional and democratic rights.”
“This is the first time a full-fledged state has been downgraded to a Union Territory following its bifurcation,” the letter reads, calling the move “without precedent in independent India.”
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Citing the Prime Minister’s own assurances—including a public statement in Bhubaneswar in May 2024 and another during a rally in Srinagar in September 2024—the Congress leaders said the time had come for the government to act on its promises.
“We have said in Parliament that we will restore the region’s statehood,” Modi had said at the time, a quote Kharge and Gandhi reminded him of.
The letter also referred to similar commitments made by the Union Government before the Supreme Court during hearings related to Article 370. The Centre had told the court that statehood would be restored “at the earliest and as soon as possible.”
I humbly request the Hon’ble @INCIndia President, Shri. @kharge Ji and JanNayak @RahulGandhi Ji to kindly apprise the Govt of India and the @PMOIndia once again for their immediate intervention to ensure legitimate Justice & Peace in #Manipur.@rashtrapatibhvn @INCManipur… pic.twitter.com/x1EMayD3mD
— Dr. Lamtinthang Haokip (@DrLamtinthangHk) July 16, 2025
In addition to pressing for statehood to be granted to Jammu and Kashmir during the upcoming Monsoon Session, the Congress leaders also demanded legislative steps to include the Union Territory of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
“This would be a significant step towards addressing the cultural, developmental, and political aspirations of the people of Ladakh,” the letter states, emphasizing the need to protect their “rights, land, and identity.”
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The demand aligns with the long-standing grievances of Ladakh’s civil society, which has voiced concerns over the lack of constitutional safeguards following the 2019 bifurcation of the former state of Jammu & Kashmir into two union territories.
The letter signals a renewed political push by the Congress to reclaim the narrative on Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh, positioning itself as the champion of regional autonomy and democratic restoration.
