Big news from Jammu and Kashmir! The government has told the Legislative Assembly Speaker that Mehraj Din Malik, a popular MLA from Doda, has been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA). This is a huge deal because it’s the first time a sitting MLA has been held under this strict law. Let’s break it down in a simple way so everyone can understand what’s going on!
Mehraj Malik, who represents the Doda-52 area in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, was detained by the police on Monday, September 8, 2025. The District Magistrate of Doda, Harvinder Singh, sent a letter to the Assembly Speaker explaining why this happened. According to the letter, Malik was booked under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act of 1978, a tough law that allows the government to detain someone without a trial for up to two years in some cases.
The government says Malik’s actions were causing trouble and could harm peace in the Doda district. They believe his behavior was a “serious threat” to keeping things calm and orderly in the area. So, they decided to detain him to stop any more problems.
The authorities didn’t just make this decision out of the blue. They looked at a lot of reports, evidence, and situations before deciding to act. The letter from the District Magistrate said that Malik’s activities were “prejudicial to the maintenance of public order.” In simple words, this means they thought what he was doing could mess up the peace and harmony in Doda.
The government said they had no choice but to use the PSA to keep things under control. They believe detaining Malik was necessary to make sure law and order stayed strong in the region, especially after some recent issues like heavy rains and flash floods that have already caused trouble for people in Doda.
If you’re wondering who Mehraj Malik is, here’s the scoop! He’s a big name in Doda and the only MLA from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Jammu and Kashmir. In the 2024 elections, he won the Doda seat by beating his rival from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by a huge margin of over 4,538 votes! That victory made history because it was the first time AAP won a seat in the J&K Assembly.
Before becoming an MLA, Malik was already a well-known leader. In 2020, he won the District Development Council (DDC) election in the Kahara area of Doda. After becoming an MLA, he stepped down from his DDC post. Malik is known for speaking up about issues like clean water, electricity, schools, and hospitals, which made him popular among locals.
This detention is a big deal because it’s super rare for a sitting MLA to be held under the PSA. The Public Safety Act is a strict law that’s usually used to detain people who the government thinks might cause big problems, like disturbing peace or threatening security. Since Malik is an elected leader chosen by the people of Doda, his detention has raised a lot of eyebrows.
Some political leaders are upset about this move. For example, Sajad Lone, an MLA from Handwara and leader of the J&K Peoples’ Conference, called it a “soulless democracy” on X. He said it’s unfair to silence an elected leader like this. Another leader, Waheed Para from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), also spoke out, saying laws like the PSA are being used to quiet political voices and stop people from speaking their minds.
Right now, Malik has been moved to Bhaderwah jail, and there’s no clear word on how long he’ll be detained. The PSA allows the government to keep someone for up to a year or even two in some cases, without a trial. However, since Malik hasn’t been convicted of any crime, he’s still an MLA, and his membership in the J&K Assembly won’t be affected for now.
The news has sparked a lot of talk in J&K. Some people think the government is trying to keep things calm in Doda, while others believe this is a way to stop Malik from speaking out. There are also reports that Malik had 18 FIRs (police complaints) and 16 daily diary reports against him for things like arguing with officials or causing disruptions.
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