As it is our responsibility, under the mandates provided to us by the Human Rights Council, to seek to clarify all cases brought to our attention, we would be grateful for the observations of your Excellency’s Government on the following matters:

• Please clarify on what grounds Jammu and Kashmir, as India’s only Muslim-majority state, lost its the constitutional special status.
• Please explain how the revocation of autonomy better ensures the right of the minorities of Jammu and Kashmir, as part of the people of India, to equally and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.
• Please indicate what constitutional or legal measures have been adopted since the revocation of Constitutional Article 370 in 2019 to ensure a high level of political participation and representation of the Kashmiri Muslim, Dogri, Gojri, Pahari, Sikh, Ladhaki and and other minorities, including any autonomy arrangement. 
• Please clarify specifically how the human rights of Kashmiri Muslim, Dogri, Gojri, Pahari, Sikh, Ladhaki and other minorities to take part in the conduct of public affairs and participate effectively in public life, directly or through freely chosen representatives, is maintained or
• Please clarify how decisions to grant domicile certificates are adopted; if there are multiple levels of checks in practice to ensure a fair and transparent process that will not be detrimental to existing and established minorities in the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the possibility to challenge such decisions; and how revenue officers responsible for the process are safeguarded from any undue pressure.
• Please clarify how the traditional residency rights of Jammu and Kashmir minorities will be respected and what steps will be taken to prevent the loss of land owned by them and mitigate heightened tensions between new arrivals and established communities to minimise the use of force by authorities.
• Please clarify how traditional land ownership and usage rights of Kashmiris, including specifically of groups such as the Gujjars existing before the revocation of autonomy in 2019, are maintained. In this regard, please describe on what basis development authorities such as the Pahalgam Development Authority can order the destruction of Gujjar seasonal dwellings.
• Please provide information on any measures taken to protect and promote the rights of minorities from the region such as the Kashmiri Muslim, Dogri, Gojri, Pahari, Sikh and Ladhaki, including their linguistic, cultural and religious rights.