Article 35A in the SC: J&K is not the only state our Constitution makes concessions for

There are at least 11 others allowed special privileges, mostly to preserve their local culture. ThePrint explains.

New Delhi: Multiple petitions in the Supreme Court have questioned the validity of Article 35A, which grants the Jammu & Kashmir legislature the power to define the state’s permanent residents.

The article is controversial because it only allows the permanent residents so defined to buy property in J&K, with several other rights and privileges, including employment in the state government and scholarships, reserved for them.

The petitions challenging Article 35A, which will now be taken up by the court in January, are seen by locals as an attack on the fundamental rights of the people of J&K. All the major political parties in J&K, barring the BJP, have already pledged to protect it.

While the article, and the constitutional provision it stems from, Article 370, is much criticised by the Hindu Right-wing as a threat to national integration, J&K is far from the only state to enjoy special privileges under the Constitution. To be exact, there are 12. ThePrint takes you through them.