Art 35A abrogation demand raised

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, September 11

As delegations discussed various issues with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh here, the abrogation of Article 35A and deportation of Rohingyas were the main demands of people of Jammu.

While the J&K High Court Bar Association (Jammu) demanded abrogation of Article 35A, its ‘victims’ briefed the Home Minister about their plight in the absence of basic rights.

“We demanded abrogation of Article 35A which is against the very spirit of the Indian Constitution and the J&K constitution and total negation of Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution,” said BS Slathia, Bar Association president, after meeting the Home Minister.

He said the plight of the women, married outside J&K, and West Pakistan refugees was also highlighted before the Union Minister to substantiate the argument of abolishment of the Article.

A group of prominent women from Jammu, led by advocate Purnima Sharma, also opposed Article 35A, dubbing it ‘biased and discriminatory’ against women. “We have clearly told the Union Minister that Article 35A is against women of J&K, so it should go as early as possible to ensure equality in society,” Purnima Sharma said.

The Bar Association and the Chamber of Commerce and Industries along with other groups demanded deportation of Rohingyas from Jammu and termed them “biggest security threats”.

“We have been agitating since long for deportation of the Rohingyas from Jammu but no action has been taken so far. We feel they can become a big security threat. The Rohingyas cannot be termed ‘refugees’ as they are neither registered with the security agencies nor concentrated at a single place in Jammu. “We would like to mention that the UNHRC cards have no validity as per the constitution of our state. Hence, even if some of them have the UN cards, they are irrelevant,” the CCI said in its memorandum submitted to the Union Minister.

Other social organisation which met Rajnath Singh demanded immediate deportation of Rohingyas from Jammu for peace and security. Over a dozen organisations endorsed the demand for declaring a state holiday on the birth anniversary of Maharaja Hari Singh, the last Dogra ruler, on September 23.

A delegation of West Pakistan refugees and safai karamcharis, who are bearing the ‘brunt’ of Article 35A, highlighted their plight before the Union Minister and pointed out that those who were supporting the Article were ‘anti-weaker’ sections. The Union Home Minister met 28 delegations on the first day of his two-day visit to Jammu. He will meet the representatives of various political parties tomorrow.