The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a PIL seeking action against former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah for making a statement on scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution, related to special status of the erstwhile state.
The court said that dissent or expression of views different from the opinion of the government cannot be termed as seditious.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hemant Gupta also imposed a cost of Rs 50,000 on petitioner Rajat Sharma who failed to substantiate his allegations that Abdullah sought help from Pakistan and China for restoring Article 370.
The Centre abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution on August 5, 2019 and divided into the state into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh - with effect from October 31, 2019.
Deccan Herald is on WhatsApp Channels | Join now for Breaking News & Editor's Picks