Six months after former chief ministers of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were arrested, the Public Safety Act has been invoked to keep them in detention in a show of the Modi government’s muscularity. Omar’s father Farooq Abdullah, also a former chief minister, has been in detention under the same law since August last. The action against Omar and Mehbooba was part of the Centre’s plan to maintain order in the State which is now converted into a Union territory after Article 370 bestowing special status on the territory was revoked. Contrary to the hype they created, these political leaders had little heft with the Kashmir masses. That they had amassed huge wealth over the years was known widely and people at large were well aware of the rampant corruption under various regimes. That there has been no visible support for them is testimony to their alienation. The decision to detain them under PSA has been to “prevent breach of peace” and has been taken despite demands by Opposition leaders to release them.
The Jammu and Kashmir PSA Act of 1978 allows the government to detain a person for up to two years without trial. The detainees are not required to be produced in court. The government (in this case the State administration since the territory is under Central rule) has to appoint an advisory board which can order two years detention in a case involving security of state. Evidently, these leaders will have to cool their heels. That the recent budget has allocated a fair amount to the territory is an index that the Centre is looking at a carrot and stick approach towards the Kashmir valley.
