J&K's Lone AAP MLA Mehraj Malik Arrested Under Public Safety Act

This is the first time that a sitting MLA has been taken into custody under the PSA, an administrative law that allows detention without charge or trial for up to two years in some cases.

08 Sep 2025, 14:17 · www.ndtv.com

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This is the first instance of a sitting MLA detained under the Public Safety Act in Jammu and Kashmir
Mehraj Malik used abusive language against the Deputy Commissioner of Doda over unpaid rent to a villager
BJP welcomed Malik’s detention, while opposition parties condemned it as an assault on democracy

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Jammu:

Jammu and Kashmir Aam Aadmi Party MLA Mehraj Malik was arrested on Monday under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA) for allegedly disturbing public order in Doda district, officials said.

This is the first time that a sitting MLA has been taken into custody under the PSA, an administrative law that allows detention without charge or trial for up to two years in some cases.

Mehraj Malik was arrested a day after a legislator from Doda allegedly made offensive remarks and used unparliamentary language against the Deputy Commissioner of Doda, Mr Harvinder Singh.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah strongly reacted to the arrest of Mr Malik, terming it as an unjustified use of power by the unelected government against the elected representatives.

"There is no justification for detaining Mehraj Malik under the PSA. He's not a threat to "public safety," & using this discredited law to detain him is wrong. If the unelected government can use its powers against an elected representative like this, then how does anyone expect the people of J&K to continue to have faith in democracy?" Mr Abdullah said in a post on X.

According to the District Magistrate of Doda, Mr Malik's detention under the PSA was "necessary in the interest of maintaining public order and safeguarding law and order in the region."

The Deputy Commissioner has the authority to invoke the PSA against an accused based on a dossier prepared by the police.

In a video, the 37-year-old AAP MLA, who appeared to be agitated about the non-payment of rent to a villager by the health department, was seen using abusive language against the deputy commissioner.

In a letter to the J&K Assembly speaker, Abdul Rahim Rather, the District Magistrate of Doda informed about the arrest of Mr Malik under the PSA.

"It is kindly submitted that Shri Mehraj Din Malik, Hon'ble Member of Legislative Assembly (Constituency Doda-52), has been booked under the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978, on grounds of his activities being prejudicial to the maintenance of public order," the letter reads.

According to the communique, "The said action has been taken after due consideration of all relevant materials, reports, and circumstances that clearly establish that the continuance of such activities by the Hon'ble Member posed a grave threat to peace, public order, and tranquillity in the district."

The action against Mr Malik, who has often courted controversies with his statements, comes against the backdrop of a massive protest by government employees who came out in support of the deputy commissioner after the AAP MLA used a social media platform to launch a derogatory campaign against him.

The protesting employees accused the MLA of being a "habitual troublemaker," and hurling abuses at senior government officers, including doctors, and provoking others against the official machinery.

The Jammu and Kashmir unit of the BJP welcomed Mr Malik's detention under the PSA, saying, "Some fragile elements have entered politics and are indulging in using abusive and unparliamentary language against the general public and public functionaries."

Meanwhile, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peoples Conference, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), condemned his detention, calling it an attempt to crush dissent and an assault on democracy.

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