SRINAGAR, OCT 13: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has set aside its single bench’s order suspending the detention order passed by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir against an alleged drug peddler in April year.
“What appears is the learned Single Judge seems to have been swayed by the fact that the petitioner (Abdul Qayoom Bhat of Chanapora Srinagar), was enlarged on bail on 11.11.2022 and the detention order was passed after about four months on 27.04.2023,” said a bench of Chief Justice N. Kotiswar Singh and Justice Rajesh Sekhr.
“However, it appears from the detention order dated 27.04.2023 that the Sr. Superintendent of Police Station, Srinagar after examining the records had moved the concerned authorities vide his letter dated 28.02.20203 and also produced the support materials on 19.04.2023. Thereafter, the detention order was passed on 27.04.2023. As such it cannot be said that there was undue delay in the process of passing the detention order after the petitioner was released on bail on 11.11.2022,” the court said, adding, “From the pleadings relating to the detention order it appears that the authorities were considering the activities of the writ petitioner (Bhat) since his release on bail also and hence, it cannot be said definitively without examining the records that the delay of four and half months had snapped the live link. In our opinion, this is an aspect which could be examined after the records from the detaining authorities were called and considered, and not at the motion stage on the first day of consideration.”
Referring to Apex Court’s judgement in Subhash Popatlal Dave (2014), the court said that it has noted that if the petitioner (Abdul Qayoom Bhat) had taken recourse to the legal remedy to challenge the order of detention even before it was executed, it is not open for him to contend that it should be quashed because there is no live link between the existing/subsequent situation and the previous situation.
“We are of the opinion that this is not a case where the learned Writ Court (Single Bench) could have passed the interim order suspending the detention order dated 27.04.2023,” the court said and allowed the appeal filed by the government.
