Article 308

Jammu and Kashmir joined India in 1947 under special terms, and Article 370 gave it a distinct constitutional relationship with the Union, including its own separate constitution and administrative arrangements for civil services. Article 308 was a technical, definitional provision clarifying that the general rules in Part XIV (about recruitment, conditions of service, and All-India Services) applied to 'States' in the ordinary sense but not automatically to Jammu and Kashmir, which had its own separate service rules under its special status.

Courts have not extensively litigated Article 308 on its own; it operated as a background definitional clause tied to Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370. Its practical relevance changed dramatically after Parliament's 2019 actions (and the Supreme Court's 2023 judgment in *In Re: Article 370*) altered Jammu and Kashmir's constitutional position, reorganizing it into Union Territories. This has made the practical operation of Article 308 largely historical, though the text remains in the Constitution.

• Myth: Article 308 gives Jammu and Kashmir a permanent, unchangeable special status.
  Fact: Article 308 is just a definitional clause about word usage in Part XIV; the actual special status came from Article 370, which was substantially altered by Parliament in 2019 and upheld with modifications by the Supreme Court in 2023.
• Myth: Article 308 excludes Jammu and Kashmir from the entire Constitution.
  Fact: It only affects how the word 'State' is understood within Part XIV (services under the Union and the States), not the whole Constitution.