‘ARTICLE 35A GROSSLY DISCRIMINATORY AGAINST WOMEN’

JAMMU : The former Jammu and Kashmir minister and BJP leader Priya Sethi on Saturday said Article 35A of the constitution was “grossly discriminatory against women” and should be done away with.

“Incorporated in the constitution by a 1954 presidential order, Article 35A accords special rights and privileges to citizens of J&K but denies property rights to a woman who marries a person from outside the state,” said Sethi, who was a minister in PDPBJP government.

“If a woman from J&K marries a non-permanent resident, her husband and children will not get permanent residents certificate. However, if a man from J&K marries a woman from other states and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, she and her children will automatically become citizens of the state and get all the privileges under Article 35A,” she told reporters here. It was also discriminatory against refugees from Pakistan and members of Valmiki and Gurkha communities settled in the state.

“Equal rights guaranteed under the Indian constitution should be given to all. But Article 35A is hindrance in equality and against the spirit of Indian constitution,” she said. The contentious Article has been challenged in the top court via a string of petitions.

Sethi said that constitutionally Article 35A did not exist. “It was brought via a presidential order and not parliament and it should go away as soon as possible,” she said.