NEW DELHI, April 8: India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party will scrap a decades-old law providing special rights to the residents of Jammu and Kashmir state, according to the party’s election manifesto released on Monday.
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“We believe that Article 35A is an obstacle in the development of the state,” the party’s manifesto said of the law that prevents non-residents from buying property in the state.
Political leaders in Muslim-majority Kashmir, where India is fighting an armed insurgency against its rule, have warned repealing the law would lead to widespread unrest. Elections begin on Thursday.
