The Supreme Court will hear on Wednesday a plea by Sara Abdullah Pilot, seeking release from detention of her brother and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. On March 5, the apex court had said that it will hear, after Holi break, the petition filed by Sara Pilot, challenging her brother’s detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA), 1978. The matter was listed before a bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra on March 5 but could not be taken up as Justice Arun Mishra was hearing a Constitution bench matter. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who appearing for Sara Pilot, had mentioned the matter before the bench, following which Justice Mishra had told him that the matter would not be taken up on March 5. Sibal requested the court to take up the matter as soon as possible as it is a habeas corpus case. The court had said that it will hear the matter post the Holi break. On March 2, the Jammu and Kashmir administration had told the Supreme Court that Omar Abdullah has been a “very vocal critic” of the abrogation of Article 370 and his presence would pose an “imminent threat to public order”. The administration also objected to the petition filed by Omar Abdullah’s sister challenging his detention under the Jammu and Kashmir PSA, 1978. “Omar Abdullah has been a very vocal critic of any possible abrogation of Article 370 prior to its abrogation in August 5, 2019, considering the very peculiar geopolitical position of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and its geographical proximity with Pakistan, the concept of ‘public order’ needs to be examined contextually,” stated the affidavit submitted by Srinagar District Magistrate. Last week, Omar Abdullah’s father Farooq Abdullah was released after being in detention for several months.
