- Major relief for Mehraj Malik as High Court sets aside PSA order
Jammu, April 27: In a major legal relief to Aam Aadmi Party legislator and J&K unit president Mehraj Malik, the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on Monday quashed his detention under the Public Safety Act.
Malik, who represents the Doda East constituency, had been detained on September 8, 2025, for allegedly disturbing public order and was later lodged in Kathua Jail. His detention under the stringent preventive law had triggered political debate and legal challenge, with his counsel questioning the grounds on which the PSA had been invoked.
According to reports, the High Court allowed Malik’s habeas corpus petition and held that the detention could not be sustained in law, effectively paving the way for his release, subject to any other pending cases or legal requirements.
Malik had filed the habeas corpus petition before the High Court on September 24, 2025, challenging his detention and also seeking compensation of Rs 5 crore. The matter had remained under judicial consideration, and the court had reserved its order on February 23, 2026, before pronouncing the judgment on Monday.
Following the verdict, AAP spokesperson Appu Singh Slathia, who was also associated with Malik’s legal team, welcomed the decision and said the judgment had strengthened the party’s faith in the judiciary. “The court pronounced its judgment in Mehraj Malik’s case. His PSA has been quashed and it bolsters our faith in judiciary,” Slathia told reporters after the hearing.
The quashing of the PSA order has come as a significant development in Jammu and Kashmir’s political and legal landscape, particularly because Malik is a sitting legislator and also heads the Aam Aadmi Party’s unit in the Union Territory. The Public Safety Act permits preventive detention in specific circumstances, and its use has often remained a subject of legal and political debate in Jammu and Kashmir. The Aam Aadmi Party is expected to formally respond to the verdict in the coming days, while Malik’s release will depend on the completion of legal formalities and the absence of any other custody-related proceedings. The judgment is being viewed by his supporters as a major vindication of his legal stand and a reaffirmation of judicial oversight in preventive detention matters.