Remove security personnel around kamaal, khalida, shah: hc directs govt

J&K High Court on Tuesday directed the government to withdraw immediately the security personnel deputed in and around the residential houses of National Conference leader Mustafa

Kamaal, president Awami National Conference Begum Khalida Shah and her son Muzaffar Shah. A division bench of Justice D S Thakur and Justice SanjeevKumar  asked the government to ensurethat

the liberty of the three leaders was not curtailed except in accordancewith the procedure prescribed by law. For compliance, the court asked the Commissioner SecretaryHome Department to file

an affidavit in this regard in its Registry within aweek. During the proceeding of the case the suggestion forwithdrawal of the security cover to the three leaders had come from the

courtamid a conflicting version between the government and the appellants over their’detention.’   While senior advocate Bashir Ahmad Bashir on behalf of thethree leaders argued that they

were put under house arrest palpably, the standof the government was that they were “free.” In support of its contention the government produced twocommunications and one of them was

addressed by SSP Srinagar to IGP Kashmirwhich indicated that the three were not detained. The appellants however filedaffidavits in court affirming they were not free. They also produced

somephotographs depicting what they said a curtailment of their movement.  “Although the suggestion for surrendering their securitycover has been made by the court with a view to ensure that

the liberty andfree movement of the appellants is not curtailed, yet it would be open to theappellants to apply for such a security cover later,” the court said.  The court observed that

given the peculiar facts andcircumstances of the case and in view of the allegation that it was thesecurity staff deputed at the residence of the three that was actuallypreventing them from

moving out of their residence, a suggestion was madewhether the appellants were prepared to surrender their security. The suggestion, the court said, was readily welcomed bySenior AAG, B A

Dar, while senior advocate Bashir Ahmad Bashir and M Shafi Mirwere initially reluctant. They urged that the appellants are political figureswho need to be protected. The senior advocate

however after some time expressedhis no objection to withdrawal of the police personnel from houses of the threeleaders.  The three leaders in an appeal before division bench havechallenged

the single judge’s order dismissing their pleas against their “housearrest.”  Their plea before the singlejudge was against their “house arrest” since August 5 last year when Article370 was

abrogated and J&K bifurcated into two Union Territories.