Preventive detention is unsustainable where allegations are vague and ordinary criminal law remedies are sufficient.

The petitioner, Shakeel Ahmad Maglo, was detained under Detention Order No. 07/DMS/PSA of 2025 dated 01.05.2025, passed by the District Magistrate, Shopian, under the Jammu & Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978

The grounds for detention alleged that the petitioner was an Over Ground Worker (OGW) for terrorists and was involved in FIR No. 62/2020 involving offenses under the IPC, IA Act, and ULA(P)A

Crucially, the petitioner had already been granted bail in the substantive criminal case by a competent court prior to the issuance of the detention order

The petitioner challenged the detention on grounds of vagueness, non-application of mind, and the sufficiency of ordinary law

1. Whether the detaining authority exhibited non-application of mind by reproducing the police dossier verbatim in the grounds of detention

2. Whether the detention order is sustainable when the detenue had been granted bail and the detaining authority failed to show compelling reasons why ordinary law was insufficient

3. Whether the communication of vague and non-specific grounds violates the detenue’s constitutional right to make an effective representation under Article 22(5)

The court applied the procedural safeguards of Article 22(5) of the Constitution of India and the J&K Public Safety Act, 1978

It relied on Rekha v. State of Tamil Nadu, which stipulates that preventive detention cannot substitute ordinary law if the latter is sufficient

Ramesh Yadav v. District Magistrate, Etah, holding that bail alone cannot justify detention without compelling reasons

Principles from Jai Singh v. State of J&K were applied to condemn the verbatim reproduction of police dossiers as evidence of non-application of mind

Chaju Ram v. State of J&K and Khudiram Das v. State of West Bengal were cited to establish that vague grounds vitiate detention by denying the right to effective representation

The court found that the detaining authority failed to provide specific particulars regarding the petitioner's alleged activities, rendering the grounds vague and "indefinite"

It observed that the detention order was a "verbatim copy" of the police dossier, which indicated a mechanical exercise of power without independent subjective satisfaction

Regarding the petitioner's prior bail, the court noted that the respondents had not challenged the bail order in a superior forum and failed to record "compelling reasons" explaining why the ordinary penal law was inadequate to address the alleged threat

The court determined that the causal connection between past acts and future apprehension was not established in a manner that justified bypassing the criminal justice system

The court quashed Detention Order No. 07/DMS/PSA of 2025 and directed the immediate release of Shakeel Ahmad Maglo from preventive custody, provided he is not required in any other case