Ridiculing the advocates of Article 370, Arun Kumar, Director of Jammu and Kashmir study Center, New Delhi said “We should not look at Kashmir as a Hindu-Muslim or Congress-BJP problem. Article 370 should be mulled only after freed of four personalities- Pt Nehru, Lord Mountbatten, Sheikh Abdulla and Maharaja Hari Singh.”

The discussions should be based on legal documents rather sentiments and fiery speeches by leaders. Kumar was addressing a mass gathering of intellectuals at a seminar here on Tuesday organised by the University Law College on the issue of the ‘Legal and Constitutional status of J&K’ .

“Only those people can stand up for the discriminatory article, who do not understand anything about it. How can one tolerate an Article that accepts supremacy of a state above Indian Constitution, supports two Parliaments, curb the fundamental rights of its citizens and differentiate between men and women?”

Citing the example of the Abdulla family, Kumar maintained that the Article was totally discriminatory against women and even the influential families could not prove an exception. Kashmiri women after marrying outside the state are deprived of inherited property and their children have further no access to higher education, government job and property rights.

“In fact it has been used as a tool to only safeguard or nourish the vested interests of fifty families at the cost of curbing the rights of 120 Lac people of the state” Kumar asserted.

“Instead of doing any good, the Article has harmed the cause of people in the state as it was barrier in implementation of progressive central laws in the state. It is high time when the people of the country demand scrapping of this Article and intensify debate in schools, colleges, universities and other places on its utility” the RSS functionary said.

Article 370 deprived west Pak refugees, OBCs, ST and SCs of their constitutional rights as enjoyed by the rest of the Indians. He said the 73rd and 74th amendment of the Indian Constitution was not implemented in the state because of this Article due to which the basic institutes of democracy could not function properly and discharge their duties as per constitution.

The controversial Article 370 had actually came, he emphatically told, as a temporary provision or was a simple order for extension of Union Constitution in the State but with the time, its abuse has not only divided Indian citizens in two categories but also deprived the 120 Lakh people of the State of progressive laws of India, like reservations to backward communities & women, right of education, right to information. Prof I.V Trivedi, the Vice Chancellor of MLSU extended the vote of thanks.

Contributed by: Geetha Sunil Pillai