Keen on giving him clean chit under political pressure, BJP-PDP alliance Government in Jammu & Kashmir is apparently playing a fixed match by prejudging the ‘mental health’ of an accused, detained under Public Safety Act (PSA)after he was found involved in sensational case of desecration of famous Aap Shambu temple in Jammu on June 14, 2016.
The youth, identified as Yasir Alfaz, was arrested by the police from the temple premises, where he was caught red-handed thrashing idols and manhandling devotees while hurling abuses on them. His act was also caught on the CCTV installed in the temple premises and vent viral forcing the State Government agencies to block mobile internet services to contain law and order situation following sporadic incidents of violence in Jammu.
Three days after the District Magistrate, Jammu had issued an order No 08/PSA of 2016 Dated 20-06-2016, ordering detention of Yasir under Public Safety Act (PSA), 1978, in regarding his involvement in the sacrilegious act at Aap Shamboo Temple in Janipur on June 14 the State Home Department vide letter no: Home/PB/V/290/2016 Dated 23-06-2016 informed the District Magistrate, Jammu, that the detention case of Yasir Alfaz S/O Khair Din/R/O Village Shiva, Tehsil Bhaderwah, District Doda has not been approved.
In its communication to the District Magistrate the State Home Department, directly under the charge of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had also noted, “It was widely reported that the subject is suffering from psychiatric disorder”.
The same order, however, failed to take note of specific media reports, where it was also reported that the accused was not seeking consultation of psychiatric specialist and had not even visited the clinic of a psychiatrist before desecrating the temple premises by thrashing idols worshipped by devotees.
Ironically, the same day when the alliance Government came under attack from its own MlAs for slapping PSA against the accused Minister for Revenue, Relief & Rehabilitation Syed Basharat Ahmed Bukhari, it had informed the lower House of the State legislature in Srinagar, “Government will look into the matter of slapping of Public Safety Act (PSA) on the youth in Jammu, if it is proved that he suffers from any kind of psychiatric problems”.
It was on the same day that Jammu District Magistrate requested the Principal Government Medical College Hospital Dr Zahid H Gillani to constitute a medical board to carry out medical examination and determine his mental health on June 25, 2016 at the psychiatry department of the Govt Medical college hospital.
Even before the accused was presented before the medical board on June 25, the same was reconstituted and the medical examination of the accused was deferred till further orders.
The communication of the Home Department, without specifying the grounds how they were assuming the accused to be a 'lunatic patient' in the absence of his medical examination by the five member medical board had also taken refuge of preliminary investigations, which suggested that Yasir was a 'lunatic patient'
In the same letter the State Home department has also brought this fact on record that the verification of this aspect has neither been indicated in the dossier of SSP, Jammu nor in the grounds of detention.
“It has neither been mentioned that the accused was already under the police custody, nor the compelling reasons have been indicated for passing a detention order,” the communication stated.
According to doctors, who had examined the accused prior to his appearance before the court of law, “he seems to be in sound health and came across as arrogant personality. We did n't find him 'lunatic' at all.”