Srinagar, Sep 08 (KNO): Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Mehraj Malik from Doda was arrested on Monday and booked under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA), marking the first instance in Jammu & Kashmir where a sitting legislator has been detained under the law.
Malik, who defeated BJP candidate Gajay Singh Rana by 4,538 votes in last year’s Assembly elections, had initially supported Omar Abdullah during government formation.
The government later informed the Legislative Assembly Speaker about the detention of Malik.
According to intimation by District Magistrate Doda, Harvinder Singh, a copy of which lies with the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Malik, who represents Doda-52 constituency, has been booked under the provisions of the J&K Public Safety Act, 1978.
The communication states that the action was taken on grounds of his activities being “prejudicial to the maintenance of public order.”
“After examining relevant materials, reports, and circumstances, authorities concluded that the continuance of such activities posed a ‘grave threat’ to peace, public order and tranquillity in the district,” it reads.
The government said preventive detention under the PSA was found necessary “in the interest of maintaining public order and safeguarding law and order in the region”.
The arrest has drawn criticism from political leaders across the region.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah voiced his opposition through social media, calling the detention unjustified. “There is no justification for detaining Mehraj Malik under PSA. He’s not a threat to public safety, and using this discredited law against an elected representative is wrong. If the unelected government can use its powers against an elected representative like this, how can the people of J&K continue to have faith in democracy?” he wrote.
Reacting to the arrest, Arvind Kejriwal, National Convenor and Chief of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), said, “Is it a serious offense to request a hospital for one’s constituency that an elected MLA is imprisoned? Mehraj Malik is a committed leader of the AAP. He will continue to represent the people and fight for their rights. Jail, threats, or conspiracies will not deter any dedicated member of AAP.”
People's Conference President and Handwara MLA Sajad Lone condemned the move, saying it undermines democratic processes. “We strongly condemn the use of the PSA against MLA Mehraj Malik. This is a soulless democracy,” Lone said, adding that such actions reduce the people’s mandate to a symbolic exercise.
He added that the will of the people remains subservient when elected representatives are denied the right to express their views, warning that such measures damage the credibility of democratic institutions in the region.
PDP leader and MLA Waheed Parra also denounced the arrest, describing the use of PSA as a tool to silence political voices. “Draconian laws are being weaponised to crush dissent. Such authoritarian measures are no way to resolve political differences in a democracy,” Parra said.
“Invoking the Public Safety Act (PSA) against MLA Mehraj Malik is unjustifiable. If an elected representative has erred, he must be questioned and dealt with under due process of law. That is how accountability works in a democracy,” Srinagar MP, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi said.
The PSA, he said, intended for exceptional cases of grave security threats, has been repeatedly misused in Jammu & Kashmir to detain individuals on vague and arbitrary grounds. "It has effectively become a tool to silence voices. Such misuse erodes public trust in institutions and reduces a legal safeguard into an instrument of suppression. We strongly condemn the use of abusive language by Mehraj Malik, but this is not justice; it is repression," he added.
NC legislator Salman Ali Sagar said Malik’s arrest under the PSA sets “a dangerous precedent” in Jammu and Kashmir. Terming the move as an attempt to “stifle democracy” and “silence dissent”, he added, “Free speech and political voices must be protected, not suppressed.
Senior Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) leader and MLA from Langate, Sheikh Khursheed, also condemned the detention of fellow MLA.
Addressing a press conference, Khursheed urged the Lieutenant Governor to review the decision immediately and appealed to the Chief Minister to convene an all-party meeting to formulate a collective response.
“This decision is not just against Mehraj Malik, but against all the people of Doda who elected him through democratic means," Khursheed said, demanding immediate revocation of the order.
The legislator said that any objectionable remarks or actions attributed to Malik should have been dealt with through judicial or parliamentary channels, not through draconian laws.
The MLA also raised serious questions over what he termed as 'discriminatory use' of the PSA in Jammu and Kashmir. “Is this law meant only for the people of J&K? Is there any other region in India where such action is taken against elected representatives?” he asked. (KNO)