Srinagar
In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the High Court has quashed the draconian Public Safety Act (PSA) slapped on Jamaat-e-Islami chief Dr Abdul Hameed Fayaz saying that the detaining authority did not apply its mind while passing the detention order, and ordered his immediate release.
A Division Bench of Justice Rajnesh Oswal and Justice Sanjay Dhar set aside the single-bench judgment dated June 22, 2019, and noted that JI President Dr Abdul Hameed Fayaz at the time of detention was implicated in two FIRs, one more than a decade old, and the other recently registered at Budgam Police Station.
Dr Abdul Hameed Fayaz was illegally arrested by Indian authorities in fake cases in 2019 to stop social, educational and political work in the territory.
“Interestingly, neither in the dossier supplied by the Senior Superintendent of Police nor in the grounds of detention there is any whisper as to whether the appellant was ever arrested in the aforesaid FIR/FIRs. There is no awareness shown by the detaining authority with regard to the status of the appellant, who is accused in such FIRs,” the bench said.
The court recorded that subjective satisfaction without taking relevant material into consideration and non-application of mind by the detaining authority had vitiated the grounds of detention.—KMS
