Why no reply on NRI businessman wife's plea against his detention: SC asks JK administration
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Jammu and Kashmir administration as to why it has not filed a reply on a plea by the wife of a Malaysia-based NRI businessman challenging his detention following abrogation of provisions of Article 370.
A bench headed by Justice N V Ramana observed that the matter relates to "personal liberty" and the J-K administration should have filed its reply on the plea.
"Why you (J-K administration) have not filed the reply?," said the bench, also comprising justices R Subhash Reddy and B R Gavai, adding, "This is a matter regarding personal liberty. You should have filed the reply by yesterday".
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the J-K administration, said he would file a reply on the petition during the day itself.
The top court was hearing a plea filed by Asifa Mubeen, the wife of Mubeen Ahmad Shah, seeking quashing of the August 7 order of detention along with the grounds of detention under section 8(1)(a) of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978.
Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, appearing for the petitioner, told the bench that superintendent of Agra jail, where Mubeen Ahmad Shah has been kept, has filed his reply on the petition and said the health of the businessman is fine.
The bench, however, said the affidavit filed by the jail superintendent is of October 4 and asked Mehta to tell the officer concerned to file a fresh report in this regard. The apex court has posted the matter for hearing on October 24.
On September 20, the top court had asked the J-K administration to respond to the plea, which has sought a direction to authorities to produce the businessman before the court.
In her plea, she has said that her husband is currently lodged at Agra Central jail and has been "wrongfully deprived" of liberty.
"The detenu (Shah), a senior and well respected citizen of India, a qualified doctor and leading NRI businessman based in Malaysia, with a serious medical illness, has been illegally deprived of his life and liberty for more than 40 days since August 5, 2019," the plea has said.
The petitioner has said that Shah had come to Srinagar on April 18 to attend the last rites of his sister-in-law and continued to stay there since his father-in-law was unwell and passed away in July.
The plea said since Shah was not keeping well during that period, he was admitted to a hospital in Srinagar in May.
"In the intervening night of August 4-5, 2019, the detenu (Shah) was arrested illegally without any warrant from his residence at Buchwara, Dalgate, Srinagar and taken to the local police station. At the time of the arrest, the detenu was not even informed about reasons and grounds of his arrest," it has said.
The plea has said that Shah is suffering from multiple ailments, including acute renal problem which has aggravated during the course of lodgement at Agra Jail.
It has said the detenu has no criminal antecedents and has an "impeccable and unblemished record as a leading businessman of the valley."
It has said that grounds, on which the detention was ordered, "are not grounds within the contemplation of the Public Safety Act, 1978 rendering in sequel thereto the detention of the detenu illegal and unconstitutional and hence liable to be quashed."
"The impugned order of detention is vitiated in law for the grounds of detention of the detenu on the face of it are too vague and cryptic and do not answer any of the imperatives as contemplated under the J&K Public Safety Act, 1978 and as such is liable to be quashed," it said, adding that grounds of on the face of it are "illusory".
It said the detention "violates with impunity the constitutional guarantees under Article 21 of the Constitution of India" of the detenu and is arbitrary and unsustainable in law.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
