Charges under the Public Safety Act (PSA) were slapped on human rights activist Khurram Parvez on Wednesday, sources said.
The PSA, considered ‘draconian’ by activists, gives the government the power to detain anyone who acts in any manner that is against the maintenance of public order.
Parvez, 39, who is the chairperson of the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) and the programme coordinator of JKCCS, was put under preventive detention last week.
On Tuesday evening, principal district and sessions judge, Srinagar, Rashid Ali Dar, had ordered Parvez’s release from a sub-jail in Kupwara and said the earlier order for his detention was not “in accordance with the law”.
Parvez’s family and lawyers have claimed that even after being released from the sub-jail following the court order, he was detained for over three hours at the Kupwara police station.
From there, he was shifted to the Kothi Bagh police station in Srinagar in the wee hours of Wednesday, without informing his family and lawyers the reason behind his continued detention.
On Wednesday afternoon, Parvez continued to be under detention at the Srinagar prison. A JKCCS official had even expressed fear the police might come up with a fresh allegation against him.
{{/usCountry}}On Wednesday afternoon, Parvez continued to be under detention at the Srinagar prison. A JKCCS official had even expressed fear the police might come up with a fresh allegation against him.
{{/usCountry}}IGP Kashmir and SSP Srinagar did not answer their phones, while SHO Kothi Bagh police station said he was not at the station and thus unaware of any news pertaining to Parvez.
Parvez was arrested on Thursday night and lodged at a prison in Srinagar. About 24 hours later, he was shifted to a sub-jail in Kupwara. The police said it was a “preventive detention” over an “apprehension of breach of peace”.
Read | Rights activist Khurram Parvez detained even after court orders release