How did Jammu and Kashmir change from an Indian state to a union territory in 2019?

In August 2019, the Indian government fundamentally altered the status of Jammu and Kashmir by removing the special autonomy it had held as a state. This transition was achieved through the following key actions:123

• Abrogation of Article 370: The government issued a presidential order that rendered Article 370—a constitutional provision that granted the region a high degree of autonomy, its own constitution, and a state flag—inoperative.14
• Reorganization Act: Parliament passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, which formally downgraded the state and bifurcated it into two separate union territories: Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.123
• Governance Changes: As a union territory, the region came under the administration of a lieutenant governor appointed by the president of India. Unlike the former state, the union territory's authority over public order and policing was transferred to the central government.34

In December 2023, India’s Supreme Court upheld these actions, ruling that the revocation of the region's semiautonomous status was constitutional because the provision had been intended as a temporary measure.2