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| NC calls party leaders’ meeting after HC told none of them in detention | | | Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Aug 19: The National Conference has decided to convene a meeting of its senior leaders on Thursday after the local administration informed the Jammu and Kashmir High Court that none of the 16 leaders, that the party claimed were in illegal confinement, were detained and that they were free to move around. In a statement issued Wednesday, the National Conference said it had taken note of the government’s stand in the High Court on the petition filed by party president Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar to secure the liberty of its various leaders who have been under illegal house detention.
“On a perusal of the reply the party has noticed that the government has unequivocally submitted before the High Court that no leader is under detention and that they are free to move subject to necessary security arrangements,” the statement said. “Now relying fully on the stand of the government before the HC that the members are free to move and expecting no hogwash on part of the government, the party president Farooq Abdullah has invited senior party members including Ali Mohammad Sagar, Abdul Rahim Rather, Mohammad Shafi Uri and Nasir Aslam Wani for a meeting at his residence on 20.8.2020 at 5 pm,” it said.
The party also made it clear that it is mindful of the present pandemic and accordingly the meeting with various leaders that have been under detention will be done in batches of four members per meeting.
“Needless to add that all standard operating procedures shall be strictly followed by all concerned,” the party statement said.
The party is hopeful that the liberty of the members under detention is now absolute and the meeting will be held successfully on the appointed day, it said. The Abdullah father-son duo had filed a bunch of habeas corpus petitions on July 13 seeking their release. A habeas corpus is a writ requiring a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court, especially to secure the person’s release unless lawful grounds are shown for their detention. Filing the replies before the High Court earlier this month, senior additional advocate general Bashir Ahmad Dar said the contention of the pleas was “not only surprising but shocking as well” as there were neither any legal proceedings underway nor was it being contemplated.
The similarly worded replies, vetted by Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range), however, said in the wake of Constitutional amendments carried out in the Article 370, “it was apprehended that inimical elements may disturb the peace” and the leaders “may provoke them to cause aggravation in the disturbance”.
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