New Delhi, August 6: The Supreme Court has deferred the hearing on the batch of petitions challenging the validity of Article 35-A of the constitution that grants special privileges to the residents of Jammu and Kashmir.  The top court will now hear the matter of August 27. The state government of Friday had also moved an application before the apex court to defer the hearing of the case, to defer the hearing of the case.

The protests are held across the Kashmir Valley against the removal of the Article 35-A. On Sunday, a shutdown was called by separatists in support of the article. The shutdown affected the daily life across the valley. A call for the complete shutdown was made by the separatist group Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) for two days. The ongoing Amarnath yatra was also suspended temporarily due to the shutdown.

Article 35-A was incorporated into the Constitution in 1954 by an order of the then President Rajendra Prasad. It was specifically devised to grant protection to state subject laws that had already been defined under the Maharaja’s rule. The article gives special rights to the residents of the state. No outsider can purchase property or claim government jobs in the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 06, 2018 11:23 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).