Doda MLA Mehraj Din Malik’s father sought his release from detention Wednesday, saying that his son was “wrongly” charged under the Public Safety Act. Malik, the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) lone MLA in J&K, was detained under the PSA earlier this week on the grounds of being “a threat to public peace” following his alleged provocative speeches and abusive language on social media. Talking to the media, Malik’s father Shams Din said he had met Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at his Srinagar residence the day before. He also said that the Public Safety Act should be invoked “only when the public suffers and asks for it”. “I asked him to take up the matter with the Lt Governor. I told him that it is your government and you should see to it,’” he said. “I told him that I will restrain my son from using the kind of language he speaks. But he speaks that language only when the poor are not heard. Then, he can do anything, he doesn’t see who’s the Deputy Commissioner, or who’s the engineer.” He also questioned the arrest, asking: “What kind of government and democracy is it, where one who speaks for the poor is straightway sent to jail?” Meanwhile, J&K Congress president Tariq Hameed Karra voiced concern at the PSA invoked against Malik, calling it a direct attack on democracy. “We believe that both sides should have opted for restraint on the issue. They should have seen that the Public Safety Act slapped on a public representative is a direct attack on democracy,” Karra told reporters during a visit to flood-hit areas of RS Pura border belt. The current situation, he claimed, reflects a tussle between the bureaucracy and democracy. “At this moment, it feels like it is bureaucracy versus democracy. We believe that both sides should have been prepared to resolve the issue through dialogue and mutual understanding… Such measures raise serious questions about democratic principles,” he said, urging authorities to “reconsider” their approach in dealing with elected representatives. Malik, who was sent to Kathua jail, was named in 18 FIRs and 16 daily diary reports at different police stations in Doda district, officials said. They alleged he was increasingly causing disturbance to public order, especially at a time when the district administration was busy initiating relief measures for people hit by recent heavy rains and flash floods in far off areas of the hilly district. Recently, a video emerged purportedly showing Malik abusing the Doda Deputy Commissioner, Harvinder Singh, over the issue of shifting a health sub-centre. While Malik alleged his recommendation in the matter was ignored, the DC claimed the MLA wanted the administration to allow the sub-centre to function in a building built by one of his supporters on state land and pay him monthly rent.
