Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 10: Legislative Assembly Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather today said swift action will be taken against PDP MLA Waheed Parra for alleging that the House endorsed the detention of Doda legislator Mehraj Malik under the Public Safety Act (PSA), calling the claims “entirely wrong” and “misleading.”
Addressing reporters in Srinagar, Rather accused Parra of deliberately spreading false information. “There is no doubt that he has done something wrong. He has forcibly misled people. He has said that the decision has received approval of the Assembly, which is wrong.Therefore, a very swift action will be taken against him,” he said.
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The Speaker clarified that the Assembly and the Speaker have no role in endorsing or rejecting PSA detentions. “We have not endorsed anything. Nor do we have any right to approve it or disapprove of it. We only have one role in this, which is to inform the Assembly that your member has been arrested. As soon as we receive that information, we have to convey it to the members. This is the only role,” Rather explained.
He added that while issues like breach of privilege could be taken up in the House, detentions under PSA do not fall under the Assembly’s jurisdiction. “If they had brought any complaint against him for breach of privilege or misconduct, then the matter could have been taken to the Assembly, and the Speaker could have questioned him. Otherwise, there is no role of the Assembly or the Speaker,” he said.
The detention of Malik under PSA has triggered heated political exchanges over the past two days. “Malik’s case has been a hot topic. PSA has been slapped against him, and there have been various statements made by his political party. All of that is in front of you,” Rather noted.
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