Srinagar, June 5, KDC: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has quashed a second preventive detention order (PSA) against a man from South Kashmir’s Kulgam district, stating that the saying “lightning never strikes twice” was proven incorrect in this case.
According to the High Court, as reported by the Srinagar-based news gathering agency Kashmir Dot Com, the man, Yasir Fayaz Rah, had been held on identical grounds in two successive detention orders, both of which were found to be legally flawed and procedurally defective.
The second preventive detention order, issued by the District Magistrate (DM), Kulgam, on December 25, 2024, had detained Yasir Fayaz Rah from October 31, 2024, to prevent him from engaging in activities prejudicial to the security of the State. However, this second order mirrored the first, which had been quashed by the High Court in December 2021 on similar grounds.
A single bench of Justice Rahul Bharti, while examining both detention orders, noted that the opening line in both was identical: “Whereas on the basis of grounds of detention placed before me by the Superintendent of Police, Kulgam…”
Justice Bharti stated that this was a critical flaw in both orders, as the District Magistrate, as the detaining authority, is legally required to independently formulate the grounds for detention, rather than relying on the grounds prepared by the police.
The first detention order, No. 09/DMK/PSA/2021, was challenged by Yasir Fayaz Rah in a writ petition, WP (Crl) No. 256/2021, and was quashed by the High Court in December 2021. Despite the clear precedent set by this ruling, the District Magistrate proceeded to issue a second detention order in December 2024, repeating the same procedural errors. The High Court, in its judgment, condemned the repeated disregard for the legal framework governing preventive detention.
The court observed that the legal process surrounding preventive detention had not been followed properly, and such arbitrary actions amounted to an infringement of the petitioner’s fundamental rights.
Justice Bharti quashed the second PSA order, along with all associated government orders and extension orders, deeming them “illegal” and “unsustainable.”
The court directed the immediate release of Yasir Fayaz Rah from Central Jail, Srinagar, or any other facility where he may have been transferred. (KDC)