Srinagar, Oct 18: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) President Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday questioned Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s statement on his remarks over the scrapping of Public Safety Act (PSA) in Jammu and Kashmir, saying that from Sheikh Abdullah to Omar Abdullah, every chief minister had the power to repeal the law but they did not do so.
The Chief Minister earlier addressed the media persons and stated that his government would revoke the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA) once statehood is restored, adding that he would not wait for an assembly session but remove it through an ordinance.
Reacting to the statement, Owaisi said the PSA was introduced in 1978 by Sheikh Abdullah to deal with smuggling and that successive chief ministers had the opportunity to repeal it.
“The Public Safety Act, 1978, was introduced by Sheikh Abdullah in 1978 to deal with smuggling. Farooq Abdullah, G. M. Shah, Mufti Sayeed, G. N. Azad, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have all been chief ministers of J&K. They could have easily repealed the PSA and prevented untold suffering and human rights violations,” Owaisi said.
He added that the law “has been misused by virtually every elected CM and unelected governor,” with over 20,000 people jailed since 1978 without criminal charges, fair trials, or a proper appeals process.
“Some detentions were extended for up to seven to twelve years. One separatist was detained under the PSA and, when he was later needed, he was served with a court warrant and granted bail. Now there is a truncated elected government, and it has dawned on it to do away with the PSA,” he said, adding, “Sab kuch luta ke hosh mein aaye to kya kiya, din mein agar chiragh jalaye to kya kiya.”—(KNO)
