Srinagar- Observing that vagueness of grounds of detention vitiates the order of detention, the High Court of J&K and Ladakh on Wednesday quashed three orders under Public Safety Act and ordered release of the detainees forthwith if not required in any other case.
“…vagueness of grounds of detention strikes at the root of the subjective satisfaction of the detaining authority thereby vitiating the order of detention,” a bench Justice Sanjay Dhar said while quashing detention order under PSA passed by District Magistrate Pulwama against one Umer Kabir Mir on 12 May 2023.
Justice Dhar referred to a judgment pronounced last year by the court’s division bench that “vague and nonspecific grounds of detention firstly, violates the fundamental right to life and personal liberty of the detainee under Article 21 of the constitution as it summarily curtails the liberty of the citizen based on the subjective satisfaction of the executive which is an exceptional power as against the general law relating to arrest and detention.”
Secondly, it deprives the detainee of giving a specific rebuttal to the grounds of detention which may satisfy the detaining authority or the Government that his detention is unlawful and compels him to answer the grounds of detention as “it is incorrect” or “it is false” etc, the court noted. Thirdly, the court observed, vague and generalised grounds in the order of detention, smacks of arbitrariness on the part of the detaining authority rendering the subjective satisfaction arrived at as violative of Article 14 of the constitution.
And fourthly, the court said, vague and non-specific grounds raise the impression that the same has been done deliberately in order to deprive the detainee of giving a precise rebuttal.
Allowing a separate petition, the court also quashed detention order dated 4 April 2024 passed by District Magistrate Baramulla against one Abdul Ahad Alias Ahad Molvi.
The court also quashed the detention order under PSA, slapped against one Mohd. Iqbal Koka, by District Magistrate Anantnag on 1 January last.
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