Question

Which of the following statements about the Kashmir Valley is true?

• A. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act grants special powers to the Indian Armed Forces to maintain public order in the Valley
• B. Kashmir has a separate constitution, a state flag, and freedom to make laws
• C. In the early 1990s, Kashmiri Pandits were forced to flee from Kashmir due to targeted violence against them.
• D. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, reconstituted the state into two union territories

Answer 1

Answer: (A), (C), (D)

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, reconstituted the state into two union territories

1. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act was enforced in Kashmir in 1990 and confers special powers on the armed forces to maintain law and order in 'disturbed areas'.
2. Until 2019, Kashmir used to have a separate constitution under Article 370. In 2019, this Article was revoked, and the state of Jammu and Kashmir was reorganised into the union territories of 'Jammu and Kashmir' and 'Ladakh'.
3. In January 1990, Kashmir was under Governor's Rule. Many Kashmiri Pandit leaders had been brutally killed in the months leading up to this. The community, which is a minority in Kashmir, was specifically targeted and threatened, and according to some estimates, over 70,000 families fled from Kashmir between 1990 and 1992.