NEW DELHI – Article 35A of India’s constitution permits the locallegislature in IoK to define permanent residents of the region.
The article came into being in 1954 by a presidential order under theconstitution’s Article 370, which grants special autonomous status to IoK.
Article 35A forbids Indians from outside the state from permanentlysettling, buying land, holding local government jobs or winning educationscholarships in the region.
The article, referred to as the Permanent Residents Law, also bars femaleresidents of IoK from property rights in the event that they marry a personfrom outside the state. The provision also extends to such women’s children.
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While Article 35A has remained unchanged, some aspects of Article 370 havebeen diluted over the decades.
Critics of Article 35A say the provision did not have parliamentarysanction, and that it discriminates against women
