SRINAGAR: The Supreme Court on Wednesday deferred until January 8 the hearing of a petition filed by Gitanjali J Angmo, wife of detained climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, challenging his arrest under the National Security Act (NSA), Hindustan Times reported.
A bench comprising Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice PB Varale put off the matter after Justice Kumar noted that Justice Varale wished to examine the case in detail. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Wangchuk, agreed to the adjournment. The case had earlier been heard by a bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice NV Anjaria. The petition argues that Wangchuk’s detention is unlawful and amounts to an arbitrary violation of his fundamental rights.
The apex court had earlier, on November 24, deferred the hearing after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre and the Ladakh administration, sought time to respond to a rejoinder filed by Angmo. Prior to that, on October 29, the court had sought replies from the Centre and the Union Territory of Ladakh on Angmo’s amended plea.
Wangchuk was detained under the NSA on September 26, two days after violent protests in Ladakh demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status resulted in four deaths and injuries to around 90 people. Authorities had accused him of provoking the unrest, NDTV reported.
In the amended petition, Angmo contended that the detention order is based on outdated FIRs, vague allegations and speculative claims, with no direct or immediate link to the grounds cited for invoking preventive detention. The plea alleges that such use of extraordinary powers constitutes a serious abuse of authority and undermines constitutional protections.
Angmo further maintained that the violence in Leh on September 24 could not be attributed to Wangchuk’s actions or statements. She said Wangchuk had publicly condemned the violence on social media and warned that any resort to violence would derail Ladakh’s years-long peaceful struggle, describing that day as the saddest of his life.
Under the National Security Act, the Centre and state governments are empowered to detain individuals to prevent activities considered prejudicial to national security. Such detention can extend up to 12 months, unless revoked earlier.
