
Jammu and Kashmir - Politics, Religion, Society: Until 2019, Jammu and Kashmir retained a special status within the union government of India as a semiautonomous state. Unlike the rest of the states, which are bound by the Indian constitution, Jammu and Kashmir followed a modified version of that constitution—as delineated in the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954—which affirmed the integrity of the state within the Republic of India. A governor, who was appointed by the president of India, served as head of state with an elected chief minister as head of government and aided by a council of ministers. The legislature consisted of two