Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 20: Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has quashed the detention of journalist Fahad Shah and directed the authorities to release him forthwith.
“In the present case, the procedural requirement has not been followed and complied with by respondents in letter and spirit and as a corollary thereof, the petition is required to be allowed and the detention order is liable to be quashed,” the High Court said, adding “no compelling reasons have been given or shown by the detaining authority while passing the detention order against Shah when he was already in custody and under an FIR in which no bail had been granted”.
“In absence of any compelling reasons, the order of detention cannot sustain the test of law,” the High Court said.
On March 3, 2022, the District Magistrate of Srinagar passed an order under Section 8 of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978, placing Shah under preventive detention to “prevent him from indulging in the activities which are prejudicial to the maintenance of public order.”
During arguments, counsel for Shah, N A Ronga, described the allegations against Shah as baseless, unfounded vague and without any substance, saying there is not an iota of truth in the allegations.
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