Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Feb 25: High Court today quashed five detention orders passed under Public Safety Act (PSA) with the direction to the jail authorities to release them from the preventive custody and upheld the one.
Justice DS Thakur quashed the detention order of detenue-Rayees Ahmad Mir who was detained under PSA by District Magistrate Baramulla on 28.4.2020.
Court said the detaining authority has not produced any cogent material, which would show reasons to justify the detention of the detenue-Mir even when he was already in custody on the date of the passing of the order impugned.
“Keeping in view the principles of law aforementioned, the order of detention can clearly be stated to be suffering from non-application of mind on the part of the District Magistrate. The order impugned, therefore, is legally untenable and is accordingly quashed. The petitioner is directed to be released forthwith if not required in any other case”, Court directed.
Justice Tashi while dealing with three separate petitions challenging therein PSAs against the detenu-Shakeel Ahmad Yatoo of Manihal District Shopian, Shabir Ahmad Malik of Veerinag Anantnag and Farhat Ahmad Mir of Dangerpora Baramulla, quashed detention orders of detenu-Yatoo and Malik while as upheld the detention order of Farhat Mir.
Court in detenu-Yatoo’s case said the respondents have not provided the relevant documents, as were required to be provided under the provisions of the Act, to the detenue resulting in violation of Article 22(5) of the Constitution of India read with Section 13 of the Jammu & Kashmir Public Safety Act rendering the detention of the detenue illegal.
In case of detenu-Farhat Mir, court upheld his detention as the respondents have opposite his liberty on the ground that he is involved in the timber smuggling by chopping down of the trees, encroaching the forest land, setting the forest fires and cultivating the profitable crop on the forest land.
“Main object of Preventive Detention is the security of a State, maintenance of public order and of supplies and services essential to the community demand, effective safeguards in the larger interest of sustenance of peaceful democratic way of life. For the foregoing reasons and discussion, the petition sans any merit and is, accordingly, dismissed”, Court said.
Justice Iqbal has quashed the PSAs of two detenues namely Zahoor Ahmad Qasab and Mushtaq Ahmad Bhat. Both were detained District Magistrate Anantnag and District Magistrate Baramulla in order to prevent them from the activities, prejudicial to the security of the state.
Justic Iqbal said the grounds of detention reveals that the detentions are vague and ambiguous and do not refer to any dates, month or year of the activities, which have been attributed to the detenues as and the grounds of detention would portray that it is a verbatim copy of Dossier of Senior Superintendent of Police, submitted by him to the concerned Magistrate as such cannot be justified.
Follow our WhatsApp channel