OWAIS MUNEER BHAT Vs. UNION TERRITORY OF J&K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is aggrieved of and has challenged, through his mother, his order of detention made by the District Magistrate, Srinagar ['the Detaining Authority'] vide his No.DMS/PSA/59/2023 dtd. 14/6/2023, whereby the petitioner has been placed under preventive detention with a view to prevent him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the maintenance of security of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

(2.) The detention has been ordered by the Detaining Authority on the basis of grounds of detention dtd. 14/6/2023 served upon the petitioner. The basis of detention, as it appears from the grounds of detention, is registration of two FIRs against the petitioner in Police Station, Nowhatta. In short, the activities of the petitioner have been found to be highly prejudicial to the maintenance of security of the State. He is found to have formed a gang of criminals to carry out his nefarious designs. The Detaining Authority has, on the basis of the material placed before him by the sponsoring agency i.e. police, arrived at a satisfaction that allowing the petitioner to be at large is detrimental to the maintenance of security of the UT of J&K and, therefore, it is imperative to detain him in the exercise of powers conferred upon him under Sec. (8) of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978 ['the Act'].

(3.) The impugned order of detention is assailed by the petitioner on numerous grounds. However, the grounds which were pressed and emphasized by learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, can be put as under: