Notice before detention: SC puts firewall around Masrat

The latest order was passed on October 30,2012,and he remains in Kathua district jail.

The Supreme Court Friday directed the Jamp;K government to give separatist leader Masrat Aalam Bhat at least a weeks notice before he is detained again an extraordinary order aimed at ensuring Bhat is not denied the chance to obtain legal recourse.

Bhat,described as an incorrigible secessionist by the government,spent more than 12 out of the 15 years from 1990 to 2005 in detention as 16 back-to-back detention orders were passed against him under the Jamp;K Public Safety Act. The latest order was passed on October 30,2012,and he remains in Kathua district jail. We observe that any fresh detention order under the PSA with respect to Masrat Aalam Bhat will not come into force until the authorities inform him advance in a week to enable him to take proper legal recourse, a Bench of Justices R M Lodha and J Chelameswar said.

The bench clarified that the time shall be computed only after effectively communicating the order to him,and not from the date of its issue.

The bench was adjudicating a writ petition filed by Masrats uncle Farooq Ahmad Bhat,seeking his release from a continuous period of incarceration without trial.

Since his arrest in October 2010,Masrat had had six PSA cases slapped on him in a row. The first five detentions were quashed by Jamp;K High Court. On Friday,the state informed the SC that the sixth PSA had been revoked on March 18.

Masrats advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan said she apprehended Masrat could have another PSA slapped on him the day he is released. 10 out of 16 detentions have been set aside. PSAs have been slapped on identical grounds every time. Our prayers go beyond the latest PSA, she said. She pointed out that even release orders by the HC had been followed by fresh orders ensuring Bhat stayed in jail for nearly 20 years.

Taking note of her apprehensions,the bench deemed it right to add safeguards in its order,directing the government and police to give him advance notice. As the government counsel sought to protest,the bench shot back: What do you challenge? Do you plan to arrest him tomorrow again? Let him at least go to court and seek remedy in that case.

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The detention order contains facts contrary to record. Instances attributed to Masrat as grounds of detention relate to dates and periods when he was in custody. Even his turning to democratic politics is cited as a threat to the nation. Then there is a charge that he advised fellow detenues to challenge their detention orders in court, Ramakrishnan told The Indian Express.

Masrat is the deputy chief of Muslim League,a constituent of Syed Ali Shah Geelanis Hurriyat. He rose to prominence during the 2008 protests when he organised massive demonstrations across Kashmir. The Supreme Court order is seen as a significant rebuke to the Jamp;K government,and especially its alleged indiscriminate use of the PSA.