by Asif Iqbal Naik
SRINAGAR: In a significant judgment concerning personal liberty and preventive detention, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has quashed the preventive detention of a 65-year-old man from Doda, holding that the material relied upon by the authorities failed to establish any actual disturbance of “public order”.
The Court quashed Detention Order No. PSA/02 of 2026 dated April 28, 2026, passed by the District Magistrate, Doda, against Din Mohd Wani, son of Munnar Wani, resident of Shuryan, Tehsil and District Doda, and directed his release forthwith, subject to him not being required in any other case.
The judgment was pronounced by Justice M. A. Chowdhary on a petition filed through Wani’s son, Shahraz Hussain Wani. The detenue was represented by Advocate N. D. Qazi, assisted by Advocate Amir Ajaz, while the respondents were represented by Government Advocate Adarsh Bhagat.
Wani had been detained under the Public Safety Act on the allegation that his activities were prejudicial to the maintenance of public order. The detention was primarily based on two FIRs relating to alleged illegal transportation of bovines, along with certain Daily Diary Reports.
After examining the detention record, the High Court held that the material relied upon by the detaining authority did not demonstrate any actual disturbance of public order. The Court noted that the FIRs had neither resulted in communal tension nor disclosed any subsequent law-and-order situation warranting preventive detention.
The Court reiterated that “public order” cannot be equated with every criminal activity or mere registration of criminal cases, and that preventive detention cannot be employed as a substitute for the ordinary criminal justice process.
The Court further found that the detenue had not been properly informed of his right to make a representation to the detaining authority within the prescribed period. The omission, it held, amounted to a violation of the constitutional safeguards guaranteed under Article 22(5) of the Constitution of India.
Another significant ground on which the detention order was found unsustainable was the alleged non-application of mind by the detaining authority. The Court observed that the grounds of detention were almost a reproduction of the police dossier, without independent consideration of the material by the authority empowered to order preventive detention.
In reaching its conclusions, the Court relied upon the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in Jai Singh & Ors. v. State of J&K and Rajesh Vashdev Adnani v. State of Maharashtra.
The High Court also referred to its earlier judgments in Hamid Mohd. v. UT of J&K & Ors. (HCP No. 4/2024) and Reham Ali v. UT of J&K & Ors. (HCP No. 9/2026), dealing with the distinction between “law and order” and “public order” in cases involving allegations related to bovine transportation and cruelty.
Holding that the detention order could not withstand judicial scrutiny, the Court allowed the petition, quashed PSA Detention Order No. 02 of 2026 dated April 28, 2026, and directed that Din Mohd. Wani be released forthwith, provided his custody was not required in connection with any other case.
