The Jammu and Kashmir administration, on Tuesday evening, revoked the Public Safety Act (PSA) against former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti.
Mufti was among the more than 500 political leaders who were detained after revocation of Article 370 in August last year.
Initially, Mufti was kept under preventive detention at Chashma Shahi on the banks of Dal lake. Later, she was shifted to a government building at M.A. Road in Srinagar.
Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Shahid Chaudhary confirmed Mufti's release to THE WEEK. He said the order under which she was detained has been revoked.
The revocation order, issued by Shaleen Kabra, principal secretary, home department, said, “In exercise of powers conferred under section 19(1) of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978, the government hereby revokes the detention order No DMS/PSA/147/2020 dated 5-2-2020 issued by district magistrate Srinagar.”
In February, the former chief minister was detained at her residence at Gupkar Road which was declared a sub jail.
In March, the government revoked detention orders of the NC patron Farooq Abdullah and his son and NC vice president Omar Abdullah, after Sara Pilot had moved Supreme Court against the detention of her father and brother.
The government had justified the detention of Abdullahs citing their potential to mobilise crowds that could threaten order in Kashmir.
Iltija Mufti, Mufti’s daughter, had challenged her mother’s continued detention under PSA in Supreme Court. In the last hearing. the court had asked the government to come clean on Mufti’s continued detention.
Mufti was part of the Gupkar Declaration that was signed by all political parties of Kashmir at Farooq's residence, declaring that revocation of Article 370 would tantamount to aggression against the people of Kashmir.
During detention, Mufti refused to budge and fall in line in lieu of her release.