Repealing Article 35(A) will end Kashmir's relationship with rest of India: IAS officer Faesal

RRepealing Article 35(A) will end Kashmir's relationship with rest of India: IAS officer Faesal
IAS officer Shah Faesal said the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India took place before the Constitution had come into force. Photo: Twitter

Srinagar: Outspoken IAS officer Shah Faesal on Sunday said repealing of Article 35(A) of the Constitution would end Jammu and Kashmir's relationship with the rest of the country.

"I would compare Article 35(A) to a marriage-deed/nikahnama. You repeal it and the relationship is over. Nothing will remain to be discussed afterwards," he said in a tweet.

He said the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India took place before the Constitution had come into force.

"Yes and those who say Accession still stands forget that Accession was just like a Roka, because the Constitution had not come into force that time. Can Roka still bind two people together even after the marriage document is annulled?" he wrote.

Faesal, a 2010-batch IAS exam topper, is currently pursuing a mid-career masters programme in the US.

The IAS officer, however, said continuing the special Constitutional provisions in respect to Jammu and Kashmir did not pose any threat to the sovereignty and integrity of the country.

"Let's not confuse the issue. Sovereignty and integrity of India can't be challenged. Not at all. But the Constitution has kept some special provisions for J&K state. It's a unique arrangement. It isn't a threat to India's integrity at all," he said.

Faesal is already subject to a disciplinary proceeding initiated by the Jammu and Kashmir government at the request of the Centre's Department of Personnel and Training for posting a tweet about frequent rapes in the country.

Responding to Faesal's remarks, former minister and Peoples Democratic Party leader Naeem Akhtar retweeted the comment and added his own views.

"Repealing it will be like marital rape. Converting a constitutional relationship into occupation."

Separatist leaders who have all along maintained that they do not recognize the supremacy of the Indian Constitution over the state have also closed their ranks to fight for preservation of Article 35A.

Promulgated on May 14, 1954, the Article gives state legislature the power to define the permanent residents of the state and also their privileges.

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