Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, July 26: High Court today quashed two detention orders under Public Safety Act and directed the authorities to release the detenues from the preventive custody.
Justice Sanjeev Kumar allowed two separate petitions challenging the detention order passed by detaining authorities and quashed both the detention orders. One detention order was passed against detenu-Aamir Majeed Wani of Shopian and another was passed against detenu-Imtiaz Ahmad Sheikh.
Detenu-Wani was detained by District Magistrate, Shopian vide order No.55/ DMS/ PSA/ 2019 dated 23.08.2019 and detenu-Sheikh was detained by vide order No.09/ DMB/ PSA/ 2019 dated 04.07.2019 for taking them into preventive custody with a view to prevent them from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the State/Country.
“There is admittedly a delay of 22 days in passing the order. Even if, we ignore this delay, the respondents, in particular the Detaining Authority, has not explained the delay of about four months in executing the impugned order of detention, more so, when the detenue was already in custody of the respondents having been arrested in FIR No.39/2019. This unexplained delay of about four months vitiates the impugned order of detention”, Justice Kumar recorded.
The Court concluded that since the ground on which the order of detention is rendered unsustainable goes to the legitimacy of the subjective satisfaction of the Detaining Authority and, therefore, this Court need not dwell and consider other grounds of challenge urged by the detenu.
Dealing with the case of detenu-Imtiaz Ahmad Sheikh, court said, when the detenue was already in custody of the respondents having been arrested in FIR No.29/2019. This unexplained delay of more than four months vitiates the impugned order of detention.
The impugned detention order was assailed by him on the ground that while he was in custody of the respondents having been arrested in case FIR No.29/2019 registered in Police Station, Tarzoo, yet the detention order passed by the Detaining Authority on 4th July, 2019 was executed and the petitioner taken in preventive custody only on 27.11.2019. “There is, thus, unexplained delay of more than four months in execution of the impugned detention order and placing of the petitioner in preventive custody”, court concluded.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel