ARTICLE 35A JAMMU & KASHMIR - SHOULD IT BE SCRAPPED ?

BACKGROUND

WHAT IS ARTICLE 35 OF JAMMU & KASHMIR

Article 35A (1954) of Indian Constitution connected with Jammu & Kashmir.

Article 35A does not allow people from outside of state of Jammu & Kashmir to work, settle or own property in the state.

It debars non residents of J&K from buying land of property , getting a government job or voting down in Assemble elections.

Article 35A was added to Article 370 by a Presidential order in 1954.

Article 370 of the Constitution grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir, while Article 35A empowers the state legislature to define the state’s “permanent residents” and their special rights and privileges.




WHY ARTICLE-35A IS IN NEWS

The petition has been filed by a Delhi-based NGO in the Supreme court challenging the validity of Article 35A of the constitution, which grants special privilege to Jammu & Kashmir.

The hearing is on 6th August 2018. So Ahead of the August 6 hearing in the Supreme Court, Separatists have called a Shutdown on August 4 and 5 in protest against government's alleged move to tamper with the Article.

 ARTICLE  35-A & ARTICLE 370 - DELICATE ISSUES
  • The NDA Government wants to have a larger debate over the Article 35A challenging the constitutional validity of the clause.
  • An NGO, ‘We the Citizens’ have filed a writ petition to strike down Article 35A.
  • The ruling party believes that the special status, certain rights and privileges are enjoyed only by the residents of the state which has given rise to alienation and separatist identity to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
  • The provision does not allow people from outside the state of Jammu & Kashmir to work, settle or own property in the state. Scholarships, forms of aid etc are also not allowed to non-residents of the state.

 Arguments against scrapping Article 35A

  • Scrapping the Article 35A is seen as an assault on the special status of the Jammu and Kashmir by the state government.
  • Article 35A cannot be challenged on the ground that they affect the fundamental rights of the other Indian Citizens.
  • The rights of the state legislature are not unlimited and can be given only in the case of – Employment, Property, Settlement and Scholarship.
  • Kashmiris are apprehensive that such a move would be dominated by the Hindu nationalist groups.
  • Former chief minister Omar Abdullah also stated that this would create a bigger agitation as was witnessed in 2008 over the transfer of land to the Amarnath Shrine Board.

Arguments in favour of scrapping Article 35A

  • Article 35A was not a part of the original Constitution but was added later by a presidential order of 1954.
  • Article 370 is another matter of discussion as it is not permanent but a temporary clause.
  • The definition can be altered by the state government by passing a law with two third majority.

Anomalies of Article 35A and 370

  • Article 370 states that all emigrants from Jammu and Kashmir, including those who migrated to Pakistan are considered as state subjects.
  • This gave rise to many doubts whether a Pakistani national can settle in the state of Kashmir and buy property which was denied to many Indian citizens.
  • The provision is also gender discriminatory as the rules discriminate against Kashmir women by restricting their choice of partners in marriage. If the husband does not hold a permanent resident certificate, the subsequent rights are denied to the children. Hence a female marrying outside the state of Jammu and Kashmir is denied of property rights in that manner.
  • Under Article 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution, Indians are not conferred state subjects which prevent them from voting, holding jobs, getting admissions to colleges etc.
  • This amounts to the violation of Article 14, 15, 16, 19 of the Constitution of India.

Jammu and Kashmir – Not only a Political Issue but also a Security Issue

  • Jammu and Kashmir is not only a political issue but also a security issue, given the fact that Pakistan always interferes in the internal matters of India and the bilateral relations between China and India has been deteriorating. So ultimately who benefits from this controversy is the question.
  • Pakistan has agreed to declare Pok as its fifth province and has decided to bleed India through thousand cuts. It has been launching terrorist attacks in India since long.
  • China and Pakistan have been friends since long. China was against declaring Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, denied NSG entry to India and is also building CPEC (China–Pakistan Economic Corridor) passing through India’s territory. This is hence a sovereignty issue to India.
Intelligence agencies have warned that there could be a "revolt" in the police ranks and massive unrest in Jammu and Kashmir if the Supreme Court passes an "adverse" order on Article 35A of the Constitution on  6th August



For more info, you can access below links:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/article-35-a-complete-shutdown-in-kashmir/articleshow/65278209.cms

https://www.firstpost.com/india/article-35a-row-petitions-challenging-special-status-of-jk-push-separatists-into-defending-the-constitution-they-defy-4891431.html


Above Information is as per as per data available in news till the date when I am posting this.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

NEPAL- CHINA TRANSIT AGREEMENT - WILL THIS END INDIAN MONOPOLY ON TRANSIT ?

Image
WHAT JUST HAPPENED? In 2016 , Nepal and China signed the ' Transit Transport Agreement ' with this - China will give access to all it's roads, rail links and Ports to Nepal to do the Trade. Now In September 2018 - This agreement came into force (There was some timeline which not completed and agreement now in force) Thus, Now Nepal can now do the trade with other countries via China's Port, Rail Link and Roads. Nepal is a land-locked country. So, If Nepal wants to do Trade with other countries - Nepal can do only with Flights. [ There is no other option ] From last so many years, India is providing the facility to Nepal to use It's roads, ports to do the Trade with other countries. In 2015 - There came a ' Madhesis Issue ' which has severely affected Nepal and its economy.  Nepal has accused India of imposing an undeclared blockade. India has denied the allegations, stating the supply shortages have been imposed by Madheshi pro...
Read more

WHAT IS PROJECT DRAGON FLY ? WHY GOOGLE WANT TO START DRAGONFLY PROJECT IN CHINA ?

Image
Background : Dragonfly is an Internet search engine app being prototyped by Google. We know GOOGLE is banned in China Due to 'Dragonfly Project' Google as a company is experiencing   ' moral and ethics crisis'. We all know Google by its values i.e. to support Freedom and to support not to censored the things by any government which is being searched by people (except the porn). NOW - Google is compromising with all these things in project 'Dragon Fly' Due to this hundreds of employees at the tech company, who are protesting the development of a censored search engine for internet users in China. About 1,400 Google employees — out of the more than 88,000 — signed a letter to company executives this week, seeking more details and transparency about the project and demanding employee input in decisions about what kind of work Google takes on. They also expressed concern that the company is violating its own ethical principles. DRAGO...
Read more

INDIA WILL BUY OIL FROM IRAN, DESPITE US SANCTION - IS THIS BRAVE STEP ?

Image
BACKGROUND - HOW ALL THIS ORIGINATED ? Like, In India - we have Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha pass the bill and make that a law. Likewise, in USA - There is Congress. They pass the bill and make that a law. USA Government did the voting and passed the CAATSA Bill. CAATSA is an American law. The bill was passed during the 115th congress , in the Senate. On August 2, 2017, President Donald Trump signed it into law while issuing two statements simultaneously that he believed the legislation was "seriously flawed". CAATSA - Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act. US Government passed this CAATSA against three countries - Iran, North Korea and Russia. And also warned that if any other country deal with these three countries, then Sanctions will be imposed on that country too under CAATSA WHY CAN THE US IMPOSE ECONOMIC SANCTIONS ON OTHER COUNTRIES? There are many reasons - US is the part of NATO. US as a militarily is a very very p...
Read more