In a historic turn, the Narendra Modi government scrapped Article 370 and Article 35A of the Indian Constitution, which gave “special status” to the state of Jammu and Kashmir, today. The state is now bifurcated into two union territories- J & K and Ladakh.
Now that Article 35 A has been revoked, anyone now can invest in Jammu and Kashmir real estate. But should you really jump to the opportunity or wait for some time?
Noteworthy here is that it was Article 35 A that gave J&K government the right to decide who qualifies as a permanent resident of the state, who in turn were the only ones allowed to acquire or own land, settle and seek government jobs in J&K region. This simply implied that people from rest of the India did not have the right to invest or buy immovable property or even settle down in the state.
Revoking Article 35 A is likely to open gates for real estate investments in J&K from across the country. However, it is true early to predict the real impact of removal of Article 35A on Kashmir real estate.
“It is a highly sensitive region and it will take a long time for all the ambiguities to clear up,” Livemint quoted the chairman of a leading property consultancy firm who did not want to be named. “The fact that the region has been an area of contention for decades will keep any parties interested in investing there in wait-and-watch mode.”
Given the vulnerable state of the region, jumping to investment in Kashmir real estate will not be a very good idea. In fact, owing to the presence of rampant militancy and the political scenario, even the residents of the state did not show any enthusiasm for trading and investing in Kashmir real estate.
“We have shopping centres in Jammu and what we’ve seen is, as soon as there is a spark of any violence or disturbance, it is the shopping centres that are shut first,” the publication quoted Shubhranshu Pani, managing director-retail services at JLL India. “After this move (revoking Article 35A), Jammu will hopefully get a fresher life but I am not very sure about Kashmir.”
Realty experts reportedly feels that despite the scrapping of Article 35 A, it will be a while when investors will gain confidence to foray into Jammu and Kashmir property.
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