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Farooq Abdullah detained under PSA night before Supreme Court heard plea to produce him

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Farooq Abdullah

The Supreme Court today – Monday, Sep 16 – sought response from the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir administration on a plea seeking to produce before court former chief minister Farooq Abdullah.

Abdullah was last night placed under detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA). The Home Department has reportedly declared his house as a Subsidiary Jail and there is no bar on meeting of relatives and friends, according to The Indian Express (IE). Last week, the Srinagar Bench of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir allowed two National Conference MPs to hold separate meetings with Farooq and vice president Omar Abdullah, the IE reported. They have been in detention since August 5 when the Centre revoked J&K’s special status and split the state into two Union Territories.

While Omar has been detained at Hari Niwas, Farooq has been detained at his own house in Srinagar’s Gupkar area.

Hearing the habeas corpus petition filed by Rajya Sabha MP and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) leader Vaiko, a bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and justices SA Bobde and SA Nazeer issued notice to the Centre and the state, and fixed Vaiko’s plea for hearing on September 30.

Vaiko, who said he is a close friend of Abdullah for the past four decades, has contended that constitutional rights conferred on the National Conference leader had been deprived of on account of “illegal detention without any authority of law”.

Is Farooq Abdullah under detention, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi asked Solicitor General  Tushar Mehta.

Mehta told the bench that he will need to get instructions from the J&K administration.

Tushar Mehta had argued against the court issuing notice to the government on the petition, arguing that Vaiko did not have a locus standi in this case. The three-judge bench, also comprising justices SA Bobde and Abdul Nazeer, however, went ahead and told the Centre to respond before September 30 when it will take up the petition again.

In his petition, Vaiko said National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah was to participate in the birth anniversary celebrations of late Tamil Nadu chief minister, CN Annadurai, also the founder of the Dravidian movement, on September 15. But he could not be located because of his alleged detention by the government. “Union home minister said Abdullah was not under any kind of detention, but we don’t know his whereabouts,” Vaiko’s counsel said.

Earlier, Home Minister Amit Shah told the Lok Sabha that the former chief minister had not been detained or arrested but was at home “out of his own free will” and that the NC leader was missing the session of his own volition. “I’m saying this for the fourth time, and I have the patience to say it for the 10th time, Farooq Abdullah has neither been detained, nor arrested,” Shah had said.

Abdullah had then accused the home minister of lying to the House, insisting that he had been under house arrest. “Dictatorial authority has been invoked and not a democratic authority that we thought they will invoke. I don’t know how many have been arrested. Nobody is allowed to come in or go out, we are under house arrest,” he said, according to news agency PTI.

Shah’s claim was also rebutted by none other than the Jammu and Kashmir high court, albeit indirectly, when it allowed two NC leaders to visit Abdullah in his home.

The top court is hearing a batch of petitions regarding the situation in Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of the Centre revoking the special status granted to it under Article 370 of the Constitution.

The court has also given permission to Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad to visit Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramullah and Jammu districts to enquire about the well being of his family members.

It will also hear CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury’s plea regarding the detention of party leader Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami. According to a media report, the court allowed Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Mohammed Yousuf Tarigami to return to Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile, reports came that Farooq Abdullah, currently a member of the Lok Sabha, was placed under detention under the stringent Public Safety Act that allows detention for up to two years without a trial.

The decision to slap the PSA on the NC leader came last night (Sunday), just before Vaiko’s habeas corpus petition in the Supreme Court came up for hearing this morning.

Recalling that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had met Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah in his office before the August 5 bombshell, The Hindu‘s Suhasini Haidar tweeted: “Amazing, when one considers that PM Modi himself met Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah just before they announced #370 restrictions and detentions…..The govt should explain why it considers him a PSA threat now.”

The Opposition has also raised questions.

Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, another former Chief Minister, strongly condemned the PSA law – usually invoked against terrorists, separatists and stone-throwers in Jammu and Kashmir – being used against Abdullah. This is the first time that the law has been slapped on a mainstream politician, especially an MP.

“Habeas corpus is an instrument in law to protect personal liberty. You are denying that also and then want us to believe that things are normal. Please change the definition of normal. You have the majority,” Manoj Jha, RJD’s Rajya Sabha MP said.

Top politicians and separatist leaders of Kashmir, including former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, have also been kept under house arrest for over 40 days.

Also Read: CJI may visit J&K ‘if required’ as petitioners allege difficulty in approaching J&K High Court

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Rahul Gandhi warns ED, CBI of strong action whenever government changes

The Congress leader’s statement follows after the Income Tax department’s fresh notices asking the party to pay Rs 1,823.08 crore.

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Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused central agencies of working at the behest of the BJP-led government at the Centre and warned them that strict action will be taken against these institutions when the government changes.

The senior Congress leader asserted that if the institutions had done their jobs properly there would have been no problem. He added that these agencies should think that some day the BJP government will change and after that there will be action. He further said that it is his guarantee that the action will be so strong that no institution will dare to do such things again.

Taking to social media platform X, Rahul Gandhi wrote that when the government changes, action will definitely be taken against those who destroyed the democracy. Mentioning that it is his guarantee, Rahul Gandhi said that such actions will be taken that no one will dare to do all this again.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement follows after the income tax department’s fresh notices asking the party to pay Rs 1,823.08 crore. The party has accused the ruling BJP of indulging in tax terrorism to financially cripple the opposition party ahead of Lok Sabha polls.

While addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters along with Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh, party treasurer Ajay Maken alleged that the BJP is in serious violation of income-tax laws. He said the I-T department should raise a demand of Rs 4,617.58 crore from the saffron party for such violations.

Ajay Maken said that the income-tax returns filed by Congress for eight years have been reopened on baseless and manufactured grounds to levy illegal I-T demand orders totalling thousands of crores of rupees. He stated that the timing of the I-T department’s action in February and March, days before and even days after the Lok Sabha election were announced on March 16, speaks for itself about the mala-fide nature of these actions.

Furthermore, the opposition party will hold nationwide protests over the weekend against fresh income tax demand of over Rs 1,800 crore, which it has described as an egregious attack on democracy and imposition of tax terrorism amid the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

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Hardeep Singh Puri says Sunita Kejriwal is preparing to hold Delhi CM post like Rabri Devi

The Union Minister was speaking to the media during the inauguration of Delhi BJP’s election office along with leaders including Delhi BJP Chief Virendra Sachdeva and Bansuri Swaraj.

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Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday compared Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, hinting that she may be gearing up to take on her husband’s post. The Union Minister was speaking to the media during the inauguration of Delhi BJP’s election office.

The BJP leader further took a dig at Delhi Chief Minister for forming an alliance with the most corrupt party against whom they had started an anti-corruption movement with social activist Anna Hazare. The minister made the statement in response to a question regarding Sunita Kejriwal, who earlier today launched a whatsapp campaign advocating for support for her husband, who is in ED custody in connection with the Excise policy case.

In a video Sunita Kejriwal said her husband has challenged the most corrupt and dictatorial forces in the country and asked people to support her husband through their prayers and blessings. She issued 2 WhatsApp numbers 8297324624 and 9700297002 through which people can send their blessings, prayers or any other messages to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo and she will communicate those to him.

She said yesterday Kejriwal had presented his side in the court, and the entire country heard it. She requested the people to listen to it if they had not listened till now. She added whatever Kejriwal had said in front of the court required a lot of courage. She said her husband is a true patriot. She requested the people to participate in the Kejriwal ko Aashirwad campaign.

BJP leader Manoj Tiwari also took a dig at Aam Aami Party asking why only Kejriwal’s wife is coming out in his support, and not the people of Delhi. He said the Honorable Justice of High Court said they cannot stop Arvind Kejriwals’ arrest that they are surprised why he hasn’t been arrested yet?

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Lok Sabha elections: INDIA bloc in Bihar seals seat-sharing deal, Congress get 9 seats, RJD 26

Purnea and Katihar, currently held by the Janata Dal (United), had emerged as the sticking point in seat-sharing talks between the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress for the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar.

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The Opposition INDIA bloc sealed the seat-sharing deal in Bihar for 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The Mahagathbandhan’s largest constituent, RJD will field its candidates from 26 seats, including Purnea and Hajipur, while the Congress will contest on nine seats, including Kishanganj and Patna Sahib. Meanwhile, the Left will fight on five seats.

Purnea and Katihar, currently held by the Janata Dal (United), had emerged as the sticking point in seat-sharing talks between the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress for the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar.

Reportedly, the Congress has been made to give up the Purnea Lok Sabha seat, which recent entrant Pappu Yadav, husband of Rajya Sabha MP Ranjeet Ranjan, was hoping to contest, mentioning that he had received assurance of Congress ticket from Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi.

The seat will be contested by RJD, which recently gave the party ticket to JD(U) turncoat Bima Bharti, but stopped short of announcing it formally. The INDIA bloc seat-sharing announcement comes a day after the filing of nomination papers for the first phase of Lok Sabha polls was over. The RJD has fielded its candidates in all four seats going to elections in the first phase.

Earlier, Tejashwi Yadav attended an INDIA bloc meeting regarding Bihar’s seat-sharing formula at Congress leader Mukul Wasnik’s residence and said that the RJD, the Congress and the Left will fight the Lok Sabha elections together in Bihar. He added that the INDIA bloc partners have agreed verbally on the seat-sharing arrangement and all the constituents are getting a respectable deal. Tejashwi Yadav’s remarks came amid reports of disquiet in the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance in Bihar over seat sharing.

In the previous Lok Sabha elections, the National Democratic Alliance, including the BJP, JD(U) and LJP won 39 seats. The first phase of the Lok Sabha elections is scheduled for April 19.

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