Srinagar: The J&K Civil Society Coordination Committee, in a press conference at a local hotel has called for a state-wide shutdown on August 27 to protest the “onslaught” on Article 35A and Article 370.
Deputy Grand Mufti, Nisar-ul-Islam and Awami National Conference president Muzafar Shah said that it was a collective responsibility of the people of Jammu and Kashmir to protect Articles 370 and 35A. Chairman All Party Sikh Coordination Committee Jagmohan Singh Raina and advocate Mir Javaid and Awami National Conference president Muzaffar Shah were also present.
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“We have to protect these constitutional provisions. This is a litmus test for us. We must join hands to protect the state subject laws and resist any onslaught on them,” said Mufti Nisar-ul-Islam.
He said the people would not allow Kashmir to become “another Palestine and render the local population homeless.”
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Earlier, on 6th August, the Supreme Court postponed the hearing on Article 35-A till August 27. “We call upon the general public of Jammu and Kashmir to observe the general strike on 27 August as a mark of protest against the onslaught on Article 35A and Article 370,” the committee members said.
Article 35-A of Constitution gives the Jammu and Kashmir legislature power to define ‘permanent residents’ of J&K and bestow on them special rights and privileges. Furthermore, only Jammu and Kashmir residents get state government jobs and own immovable property in the state.
