JKHC quashes detention of 2 held by Mumbai cops

Srinagar, Nov 22: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has quashed the Public Safety Act (PSA) against two people arrested by the Mumbai police in India's commercial capital last year.

The Mumbai police had arrested Mohammad Ramzan Haji and Khursheed Ahmad of Bandipora in Baramulla district on charges of being active militants of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and also claimed to have seized some explosives from them.

The Jammu and Kashmir police later sought their remand in connection with two cases and the two were later lodged in the Central Jail here. The state government invoked the PSA against them.

The two challenged the PSA and other cases registered against them in the high court.

Their counsel, Mir Shafqat Hussain, submitted before the court that the two were prominent entrepreneurs who went to Mumbai in connection with business and were arrested by the Mumbai police from the Haj House there and booked under ''false'' cases.

The counsel said the state government has no ground to pass a detention order against the two who were already in jail. ''They were facing detention in cases which carry life or death sentence and they had not applied for the bail. So, there was no need to slap the PSA against them,'' he said and argued that the two were illiterates and the orders were presented to them in English.

After hearing arguments from both the sides, the court quashed the detention order. It also observed that mind was not applied while passing the detention order. The court said there was no compelling reason to pass the order.

It has also quashed detention of Javed Ahmad Mir, Bilal Ahmad Mir and Abdul Rashid Khan.

While the PSA was invoked against Mir for being an upper-ground worker, Bilal had been accused of being involved in a 'fidayeen (suicide)' attack in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

UNI

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