Age No Ground For Leniency When Activities Pose Threat: J&K&L HC Upholds Detention Of 18-Yr-Old Over Alleged Involvement In Terror Attack

The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has dismissed a habeas corpus petition filed by an 18-year-old detenue held under the J&K Public Safety Act, 1978, holding that his age cannot be treated as a ground for leniency when his alleged activities pose a potential risk to the security of the Union Territory.The petitioner was allegedly involved in the terror attack on the famous Krishna Dhaba in Srinagar and continued to work as an over-ground worker for terrorists even after his release from juvenile custody.A Single Bench of Justice Rahul Bharti, while dismissing the petition, observed, “.... the age of the petitioner which is shown to be 18 years cannot count as an element of leniency to weigh in favour of the petitioner when the alleged state of activities of the petitioner are potential risk to the security of UT of J&K at the hands of the petitioner and his handlers as named in the dossier as well as in the grounds of detention.”Background:In the instant case the Sr. Superintendent of Police, Pulwama, submitted a dossier to the District Magistrate stating that the petitioner's activities were prejudicial to the security of the State. The grounds of detention revealed that the petitioner was in contact with one Shakeel Ahmad @ Gazi on Facebook, sharing contact numbers and indulging in WhatsApp chat. The petitioner was alleged to have carried out the killing of the owner of Krishna Dabha at Srinagar on 17.02.2021, involving two friends who opened fire, leaving the owner injured, who later succumbed. FIR was registered at Police Station Ram Munshi Bagh, Srinagar, for offences under Sections 302, 120-B IPC, 7/27 of the Indian Arms Act, and Sections 13, 16, 18, 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.At the time of the alleged commission of the crime, the petitioner was a juvenile. He was lodged in the Juvenile Home, Harwan, Srinagar, and later released. However, he again got involved with anti-national and subversive activities as an over-ground worker of killed terrorists. The petitioner was subjected to proceedings under Section 126 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 but was found still working as an OGW, leaving no option but to subject him to preventive detention.The petitioner also made a written representation to the District Magistrate, which was processed and subsequently rejected. Consequently, this habeas corpus petition was filed. Court's Observation: The Court examined the facts and circumstances, noting that the incident of 17.02.2021 was not an ordinary offence under the Indian Penal Code but also attracted the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The incident took place in the heart of Srinagar city, killing the owner of Krishna Dabha, a famous eating joint frequented by tourists and locals.The Court observed, “When this Court examines the facts and circumstances of the case and the reported tendency of the petitioner in the background of his alleged involvement in the incident of 17.02.2021 which came to be counted not as an ordinary offence under Indian Penal Code (IPC) but also Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the said incident taking place in the heart of the Srinagar city killing of owner of Krishna Dabha at Srinagar, this Court is convinced that the basis for ordering the preventive detention of the petitioner cannot be faulted with.”The Court further noted that in his representation, the petitioner had not come up with any denial of his association with the named terrorists. Even the order of the Presiding Officer, Fast Track Court for POCSO Cases, Srinagar, passed in an appeal under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, referred to the incident of 17.02.2021 as a terror attack on Krishna Dabha with the involvement of the petitioner, the Court recorded. The Court further noted that upon his arrest from his house on 19.02.2021, recovery of two pistols, 11 rounds of pistols, and one hand grenade was effected. The killing was part of a criminal conspiracy hatched by a Pakistani-based terrorist with terrorists active in the Valley, carried out with the sole motive of spreading a wave of terror in Srinagar.The Court specifically addressed the contentions with respect to the petitioner's age and observed that the age of the petitioner which is shown to be 18 years cannot count as an element of leniency to weigh in favour of the petitioner when the alleged state of activities of the petitioner are potential risk to the security of UT of J&K at the hands of the petitioner and his handlers as named in the dossier as well as in the grounds of detention.The Court also noted that the petitioner's challenge that the detention was based solely on one FIR and that there was a time distance from the incident was without merit, as his subsequent conduct of continuing to work as an OGW even after being subjected to BNSS proceedings indicated a continuing threat.In view of these observations the Court dismissed the writ petition. Case Title: Vilayat Aziz Mir v. UT of J&K ...

Age No Ground For Leniency When Activities Pose Threat: J&K&L HC Upholds Detention Of 18-Yr-Old Over Alleged Involvement In Terror Attack

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