Detention of two clerics in Kashmir quashed by High Court

Jammu and Kashmir high court on Friday quashed detention of two religious clerics of Kashmir, Moulana Abdul Rashid Dawoodi and Mushtaq Ahmed Veeri. There were in house detention under the Public Safety Act since September 2022.

Dawoodi, a Barelvi scholar, is head of “Tehreek e Soutul Auliya” and Veeri, who was booked under PSA in 2019 also, is a religious leader of Jamiat ahle Hadees (JaH) in Anantnag.

The Bharatiya Janata Party welcomed the quashing of detention orders, while Apni Party’s Altaf Bukhari urged the administration to release Hurriyat chairperson Mirwaiz Kashmir, Molvi Umar Farooq, who is under house detention. “Great to hear about the high court verdict. Regardless of their ideological differences, we believe in religious freedom. Hope both the religious scholars will serve humanity and bring positive changes in the society,” said BJP spokesperson Altaf Thakur.

The two were among over a dozen persons who were arrested and booked under Public Safety Act in 2022.

Kashmir additional director general of police (ADGP) Vijay Kumar had defended booking of religious preachers, claiming that they were instigating youth.

“We earnestly appeal to the administration to release Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Moulana Manzoor and others. Given their huge following, these scholars can play a vital role in addressing pressing social issues,” Apni party said in a statement.