J&K govt drops bill on women’s status

An under-pressure Jammu and Kashmir legislative council dropped on Monday a controversial bill that sought to take away the ‘permanent resident’ status of women marrying non-state subjects.

The Jammu and Kashmir Permanent Resident (Disqualification) Certificate (PRC) Bill, 2010, was brought by opposition PDP member Murtaza Ahmad Khan in the Upper House on March 8. Surprisingly, the government let it be introduced as a private member’s bill.

On Monday, Panthers Party member Syed Rafiq Shah sought deletion of the bill, saying no constitutional amendment bill could be introduced in the legislative council under section 147.

Later, the government sought to drop the bill on technical grounds. Deputy chairman of the House AS Micky said the legislative assembly, not council, was the appropriate forum to table such a bill. This angered Khan, who said it was “molestation of the constitution and the legislature”.

“I didn’t seek a constitutional amendment, I wanted a new Act. I had submitted the bill a month ago and the government saw it and let it be introduced. But today, it was not listed as the government wanted to avoid embarrassment,” he said.