Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Dec 19: The High Court has upheld a detention order under Public Safety Act (PSA) and quashed another one with the direction to the authorities to release the detenue.
Justice M A Chowdhary upheld the PSA of one Bahar Nabi Mir of Watergam, Baramulla. He was detained under the orders of District Magistrate Baramulla in April this year under the PSA for his alleged activities that were highly prejudicial to the security of the J&K.
Challenging his detention on the contentions that he was arrested by the police on suspicion for a few days and then was detained under the preventive custody in terms of the impugned order and was shifted to District Jail, Udhampur.
Perusal of grounds of detention reveals that on 25.11.2019 Mir was apprehended along-with two other associates of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit while travelling in a vehicle. He was tasked to intimidate the individuals submitting recruitment applications for the Railways Security as Special Police Officers (SPOs) at Railway Station, Baramulla.
Further he was found actively associated with the LeT terror outfit as an OGW (Over Ground Worker) and confirmed that he facilitated the safe passage and logistical support for terrorists and was operating discreetly through encrypted communication applications and virtual proxy networks, maintaining contacts with active terrorists of LeT.
The court on perusal of the record and pleadings said, the detaining authority has complied with the mandate of law and by no stretch of imagination it can be said that the detaining authority has committed any breach which would warrant interference by this Court.
“The respondents have complied with the mandate and safeguards provided by the Act. Hence, this writ petition merits dismissal and is, accordingly, dismissed”, the court concluded.
The court quashed the PSA of Shahid Riyaz Bhat of District Pulwama. Bhat was detained on 8.4.2024 under the PSA.
The court quashed the PSA by recording that unless there are fresh grounds of detention, a person cannot be put under preventive detention on the grounds of detention which have formed the basis of an earlier FIR wherein he has been bailed out. “Thus, the impugned order of detention cannot be sustained in the eyes of law.”
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