article 35a

Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has ordered the renewal of long-pending expired lease deeds, offering legal security to land titles for residents. Special camps will be organized starting April 15 to process these cases, marking a significant step towards responsive governance and stability for affected families.

The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly has admitted a private member's bill aimed at protecting current land leaseholders. This move faces strong opposition, with critics alleging it benefits wealthy stakeholders, particularly hotel owners in Gulmarg. The bill seeks to counter recent rules that bar lease extensions and mandate auctions.

The Jammu and Kashmir state BJP chief spokesperson Sunil Sethi said over the last few days, the political climate in the state has heated up over article 35a and some political parties, especially those active in Kashmir, have taken an "anti-national and anti-people" stand on the issue.

article 35a, which was incorporated in the Constitution by a 1954 Presidential Order, accords special rights and privileges to the Jammu and Kashmir citizens and denies property rights to a woman who marries a person from outside the state.

A three-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court (SC) will hear a legal challenge today regarding constitutional validity of article 35a which bars non-residents of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) from purchasing land in the state. Similar hearings have been adjourned twice this month.

Former J&K CM Omar Abdullah met the Governor S P Malik on Saturday. Following the meeting, Abdullah at a presser said that the Governor has assured his party that no moves are planned on repealing Articles 370 and 35A of the Constitution, or the state's trifurcation. The NC leader also asked for assurance on these issues from the Centre in Parliament on Monday.

Mehbooba Mufti met the Governor at the Raj Bhavan and briefed him about her party's views and the discussions she had had with leaders of various political parties regarding the challenge to article 35a, an official spokesman said.

Addressing a function here to celebrate the Peoples Democratic Party's 20th raising day, Mufti asked her party workers to get ready for a big fight for the protection of article 35a, which gives special rights and privileges to the state's permanent residents.

Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), consisting of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, had on August 17 called for a two-day strike from August 26, but the strike has now been deferred to the end of the month. article 35a empowers the Jammu and Kashmir assembly to define "permanent residents" for bestowing special rights and privileges to them.

Highlighting that the provision acts as a"bridge" between the state and the rest of India, Abhijeet Jasrotia said the PDP, whether in power or opposition, had always worked to safeguard Articles 370 and 35A. He said the residents of Jammu region especially the Dogras were mature enough to understand the threat to their next generation if the act was revoked.

The petitioners have questioned the provision’s legality, claiming it discriminates between J&K’s permanent residents and other Indians in voting, employment, getting seats in educational and professional institutions and owning property, as also on the basis of gender.

The Supreme Court on Monday deferred hearing in the matter of article 35a for three months, news agency ANI reported. article 35a of the Constitution empowers the state legislature of Jammu and Kashmir to define its "permanent residents" and their special rights and privileges.

The issue is of vital importance for the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh as abrogation of article 35a will have serious ramifications, Omar said.

The Supreme Court on Friday again adjourned its hearing on a plea challenging the constitutional validity of Article 35-A, this time until January. The J&K government and the Centre on Friday sought postponement of the hearing on the ground that the Panchayat polls in the state would go on till December.