Neeraj Rohmetra
JAMMU, Nov 3: The Supreme Court Registry today granted four weeks’ time to the State Government for filling reply in the case pertaining to Article 35A of the Constitution, which allows the State of Jammu and Kashmir to grant special privileges and right to permanent residents.
Reliable sources told EXCELSIOR that the State Government sought more time from the Apex Court Registry for filing a detailed response to the petition titled — “We the Citizens vs. Union of India”, which had challenged incorporation of Article 35A in the India Constitution.
The Supreme Court Registry has fixed December 3 as the next date of hearing.
“While giving four weeks’ time to the State Government, the Supreme Court Registry categorically stated that the State is being granted last chance for filing counter affidavit in the case and must file reply before the stipulated time”, says the order by Registrar M V Ramesh, which is in possession of EXCELSIOR.
Ironically, the State counsel hadn’t even filed ‘vakalatnama’ in the case so far and the Registry has granted one week to file it.
While the State was represented by Additional Advocate General G M Kawoosa and Anif Sikandir Mir, the Centre was represented by Advocate Gunwant Dara and Ms Sushma Suri.
The petition challenging the continuation of Article 35A has been filed by an NGO — “We The Citizens’ being headed by its president, Sandeep Kulkarni. The NGO was represented by its counsels – Barun Kumar Sinha and Rameshwar Prasad Goyal, before the Supreme Court Registry today.
Source affirmed, “the State Government’s response to the petition is almost ready and State Law Department shall be holding final consultations with office of Advocate General soon and file a detailed reply within the stipulated time. They have invoked Article 370 of the Constitution and several judgement of the Supreme Court to defend Article 35A of the Constitution, which confers special rights and privileges to the State subjects”.
The State Government is relying on two judgements pertaining to the same matter, which were delivered by two different Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court and another full court judgement delivered by the full judge Bench of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. “The Judgements have fully endorsed the views of the State Government on the matter and are beneficial to all State Subjects of the State”, sources remarked.
The judgements will be quoted to defend the State Government’s view point that insertion of Article 35 A by the President is within his powers under Article 370 of the Constitution of India.
The State Government has also contended that powers of the President to add any provision in the Constitution of India for its application to J&K has already been settled by the Supreme Court in a number of cases.
Earlier, on August 21, the Apex Court Bench comprising Justice H L Dattu and Justice S A Bobde issuing notice to the Centre and State Government and directed the Centre to explain the special status to the State of J&K. The Supreme Court had decided to examine the Constitutional validity of a Presidential order under Article 370 of the Constitution of India, which grants ‘special status’ to the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
The direction were issued in response to a writ petition filed by Sandeep Kulkarni, President of a Society called “We the Citizens”, wherein the latter has contended that the restriction imposed through addition of a new Article 35-A to the Constitution was beyond the President’s powers under Article 370(1)d. The impugned provision is part of a Presidential Order of 1954 and has serious repercussion on the Status enjoyed by J&K.
The petitioner contented that the Presidential order made inapplicable the entire chapter on fundamental rights in the State regarding specified laws relating to permanent residents, special privileges to such residents, acquisition of immovable property and several other issues.
Article 35A was applied to J&K through the “Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order 1954” issued by President Rajendra Prasad on May 14, 1954. It was devised to grant protection to state subject laws that had already been defined during the Maharaja’s rule and notified in 1927 and 1932.
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