Mehbooba Mufti likely to meet PM Modi over Article 35A

New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Friday to discuss Article 35A which grants special privileges to the state.

A vocal supporter of the Article that bars outsiders from owning property in the state, Mufti will be briefing PM Modi about the possible backlash in the state if Article 35A was abrogated, sources said.

The Article empowers the Jammu and Kashmir legislature to define the state’s “permanent residents” and their special rights and privileges and recently came under focus after two Kashmiri women approached the Supreme Court, challenging it had disenfranchised their children.

While, the PDP and BJP have a coalition in Jammu and Kashmir, both the parties are not on the same page regarding the issue. It has been a long standing demand of the BJP that the Article be removed.