Govt can’t hold Kashmir’s 7 mn in ‘custody’ under Sec 144: Kapil Sibal to SC

NEW DELHI: The government can act tough against mischiefmakers in Kashmir instead of holding the seven million people of Kashmir in “virtual custody” under Section 144 of the CrPC, senior advocate Kapil Sibal argued before the Supreme Court on Wednesday, urging the court to ensure that fundamental rights of an entire state are not completely taken away in future.

“We cannot resurrect the past. But we can be cautious in the future,” Sibal said in his concluding remarks on a batch of petitions challenging the unprecedented communication lockdown and a ban on more than four people congregating anywhere in the state.

A three-judge bench, led by Justice NV Ramana, who is slated to be the Chief Justice of India, was hearing a batch of petitions which challenged the communication lockdown and the blanket imposition of Section 144.


The lockdown was imposed after the Centre took away the former J&K state’s special status and carved it into two separate UTs. These measures have since been relaxed, the UT’s government has since claimed.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said on Wednesday that Section 144 is no longer being imposed during day time and only where necessary during night. He said the government had imposed these measures as a precautionary measure to prevent secessionist elements from fanning anti-India sentiments. Mehta said anti-India forces and some local politicians were using social media to fuel unrest in the state.