Srinagar: The High Court of Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir has annulled the detention of three individuals, ruling that their detention under the Public Safety Act was based on “vague and unspecific grounds.”

A bench led by Justice Sanjay Dhar ordered the release of Umer Kabir Mir from Pulwama district, Abdul Ahad, also known as Ahad Molvi, from Baramulla, and Muhammad Iqbal Koka from Islamabad districts. The court’s decision follows individual pleas challenging their detention.

Mir’s detention was ordered by the District Magistrate of Pulwama on May 12, 2023. Molvi was detained following an order from April 4, 2024, by the District Magistrate of Baramulla. Koka was held based on a January 1 order from the District Magistrate of Islamabad last year.

The court instructed authorities to release the detainees immediately unless they are required in other cases. Justice Dhar noted that the vagueness in the grounds for detention undermines the detaining authority’s subjective satisfaction, rendering the detention orders invalid.

The judgment emphasized that detentions based on vague and nonspecific grounds violate the fundamental right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the constitution. It further stated that such grounds seem crafted to prevent detainees from providing a precise rebuttal.