J&K High Court Bar Association Jammu through its General Secretary A.P. Singh Tuesday filed a writ petition seeking quashment of order No.54 DMJ of 2015 dated August, 1, 2015 whereby District Magistrate Jammu imposed the restrictions under Section 144 Cr.P.C within the Municipal Limits of all Tehsils of Jammu.In the writ petition filed through Advocates Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed, Arshad Majid Malik and Irfaan Muhammad Khan it is alleged that the impugned prohibitory order is vindictive, illegal, unconstitutional and actuated with malafide exercise of power. The sole aim of the prohibitory order is to defuse the momentum of the agitation which is receiving mammoth response from the Public of Jammu Province and the District Magistrate Jammu issued the order impugned just to crush the popular movement for establishment of AIIMS in Jammu.
It is further alleged in the petition that the local police crossed all the limits of decency when it used lathies on the innocent Bar Members including its President. Not only the tear gas shells were used upon the protesting lawyers and other Members of the AIIMS Coordination Committee. Even Police Personnel were caught on camera while damaging the vehicles of the protestors and false/frivolous FIRs were lodged against the senior functionaries of AIIMS Coordination Committee.It is further averred in the writ petition that Section 144 Cr.P.C. deals with immediate prevention and speedy remedy and before invoking such a provision, the statutory authority must be satisfied regarding the existence of the circumstances showing the necessity of an immediate action. The sine qua non for an order under Section 144 Cr.P.C. is urgency requiring an immediate and speedy intervention by passing of an order. Such a provision can be used only in grave circumstances for maintenance of public peace.
The emergency must be sudden and the consequences sufficiently grave but in the present case there is complete non-application of mind as a bare perusal of the impugned prohibitory order refers to the inputs received by District Magistrate Jammu from SSP, Jammu which are factually incorrect as Police since inception of the agitation has been cruel/brutal to the agitating lawyers and other members of AIIMS Coordination Committee. The agitation all along has remained peaceful and it is only the Police which used undue force to create law and order problem and the impugned order was issued when there was no such emergent situation as contemplated under Section 144 Cr.P.C.Advocate S.S. Ahmed according to CNS made a mention in the Court of Justice Janak Raj Kotwal and requested for listing the instant petition in view of its emergent nature and after considering the submissions Justice J.R. Kotwal directed the Registry to list this petition on August 12. (CNS)