Abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A and Its Regional Implications: Evidence through Systematic Literature Review Published During (2019-2026)

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine Articles 370 and 35A, abrogated by the Indian Government on August 5, 2019. This study utilized the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA 2020 guideline). The PRISMA methodology offers a way to encapsulate the systematic, transparent and reproducible identification, screening and synthesis of related literature. PRISMA provides thematic analysis through systematic literature review (SLR). This article investigates the political, legal, security, socio-economic and geopolitical impacts of the Indian government’s abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A.  Only 11 articles out of 218 were selected from top databases such as Taylor and Francis journals, Springer link, ProQuest, Wiley Inter science and Google Scholars (see Appendix 1 at the end).  All peer-reviewed articles published between 2019-2026 were shortlisted, analyzed and then presented in tabular forms. The findings show that the Indian government's abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A has changed the demographic structure of Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir. It also confirms that abrogation has caused short-term security benefits, such as the significant reduction of terrorism-related activities, political alienation, erosion of the Kashmiri political voice, and an overwhelming sense of fear of demographic changes with the removal of Article 35A. Furthermore, the abrogation has created a “skin-deep” calm and discredited the majority of the politics in the region. For Pakistan, the removal of Article 35A is a unilateral, illegal declaration of a disputed region, which heightens security dilemmas and constrains relations. The findings recommend that the abrogation of articles 370 and 35A will transform the Kashmir conflict without end, unless democratic processes are reinstated, Kashmiri identity issues are resolved, and effective dialogue is initiated between India and Pakistan. This review identifies significant gaps related to long-term empirical research and provides relevant policy suggestions.