Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Mar 27: High Court quashed the detention of a detenue passed under Public Safety Act for the offences committed three years before and directed the authorities to release him from preventive custody.
Justice Rajnesh Oswal quashed the detention order of one Ashiq Ahmad Rather of Pulwama. Rather was detained under Public Safety Act on August 6, 2019 by virtue of a detention order passed by District Magistrate Pulwama.
Challenging the said detention through his father on the grounds that the grounds of detention are vague and on the basis of such vague grounds, no prudent man can make an effective representation against those allegations.
While as the authorities contended before the court that all the constitutional as well as procedural safeguards as envisaged by Article 22 (5) of the Constitution of India and J&K Public Safety Act have been strictly followed while issuing the order impugned against the detenue.
After appreciating the rival contentions of the parties, court noted that the procedural requirements are the only safeguards available to the detenu since the court cannot go behind the subjective satisfaction of the detaining authority. The procedural requirements are, therefore, to be strictly complied with, if any, value is to be attached to the liberty of the subject and the constitutional rights guaranteed to him in that regard.
The perusal of the grounds of detention reveal that the District Magistrate has relied upon three FIRs i.e. FIR No. 122/2016 for the commission of offence under Section 13 ULA(P) Act, FIR No. 124/2016 for the commission of offence under Section 13 ULA(P) Act and FIR No. 466/2016 for the commission of offences under Section 13 ULA(P) Act, 148,149,336,307,332, 427 RPC of P/S Pulwama and these FIRs have not been furnished to the petitioner, as such this disabled the petitioner for making an effective representation against the order impugned.
“Otherwise also the bare perusal of the grounds of detention reveals that the detaining authority has relied upon three FIRs mentioned above while issuing the order impugned, all these FIRs pertain to the year 2016, whereas order impugned has been passed on 6th August 2019”, Justice Oswal recorded in the judgment by observing that there is delay of three years in passing the detention order.
Thus the delay of three years in passing the order of detention, court said, has snapped the link between the prejudicial activities and the purpose for which the detention order is passed and on these counts only, held the detention order No. 38/DMP/PSA/19 dated 06.08.2019 is required to be quashed, and, as such, the same is quashed and directed the authorities to release the detenu forthwith provided he is not required in any other case.
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