The Supreme Court will hear on Monday pleas against Article 35-A which debars a non-state subject from purchasing land or property, seek a government job or vote in the Assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir.
The case is listed before court No. 1 (Chief Justice Court) on October 30 in the supplementary list, Greater Kashmir reliably learnt on Saturday.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Dipak Mishra, Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Ajay Manikrao Khanwikar will hear the petitions.
On July 17, this year, a two-judge bench of the apex court had referred the case to the three-judge bench.
A little-known non-governmental organisation “We the Citizens” has approached the apex court seeking scrapping of Article 35-A which defines special privileges enjoyed by permanent residents of J&K in matters related to employment, acquisition of immovable property, settlements and scholarships.
In its affidavit, the Jammu and Kashmir government has sought dismissal of the petition(s) while the government of India has not shown any liking to file its affidavit in the case.
Article 35-A was extended to J&K through the ‘Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order’ issued by President Rajendra Prasad on May 14, 1954. It was specifically devised to grant protection to state subject laws that had already been defined under the Maharaja’s rule and notified in 1927 and 1932.
If Article 35-A is scrapped, J&K will lose all the special privileges including the state subject law, right to property, right to employment, and right to settlement, according to legal experts.
The apex court has already clubbed other petitions including a petition filed by Charu Wali Khanna challenging Article 35-A of the Constitution and Section 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution which deal with the “permanent residents” of the state with the petition by NGO “We the Citizens.”
“Section 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution restricts the basic right of women to marry a man of their choice by not giving the heirs any right to property if the woman marries a man not holding the permanent resident certificate. Her children are denied a permanent resident certificate,” Charu has pleaded.
Two former Law secretaries of Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Ahmad Lone and Akhtar Hussain Kochak, as also Rao Farman Ali and Farooq Ahmad Ganai, have filed separate applications in the court seeking impleadment as party respondents in the case.
Moreover, Congress leader Tariq Hameed Kara, Mir Kasim, Balwant Singh and Sadiq Hussain have also moved separate applications for their intervention. The applications are likely to come up for hearing on Monday.