Doda East MLA and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Jammu and Kashmir president Mehraj Malik returned to Doda on Sunday for the first time in 238 days, receiving a massive public welcome at Sports Stadium Doda. Of those 238 days, 230 were spent in detention under the Public Safety Act (PSA), which the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh quashed on April 27.
According to details received by The Chenab Times, more than 15,000 people gathered at the stadium to receive the legislator, who had been absent from his constituency since his arrest on September 8, 2025.
The large turnout came despite restrictions imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) by police around 11 am on Sunday morning, prohibiting gatherings of more than five persons in the area. While the restrictions were in place, Malik urged his supporters through social media to make their way to Sports Stadium Doda. As crowds converged on the restricted route in large numbers, the gathering reportedly grew too large for authorities to contain. The restrictions were effectively lifted without any formal public announcement, and people were allowed through to the stadium.
Addressing the gathering, Malik pledged to continue his work with renewed energy. He called on his supporters to back him for the office of Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, saying the change of leadership was necessary to reform a system that, in his words, has consistently worked against the poor.
Malik was detained on September 8, 2025, under orders from the District Magistrate of Doda, who cited his alleged involvement in 18 FIRs and 16 daily diary reports registered between 2014 and 2025. Justice Mohd Yousuf Wani, while allowing Malik’s habeas corpus petition, ruled that the allegations essentially fall within the realm of ordinary law and order and could not justify preventive detention under the PSA.
Malik was the first sitting MLA in Jammu and Kashmir’s recent history to be arrested under the PSA, which allows detention for up to two years without charge or trial. His arrest had drawn criticism from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, and legislators from multiple parties.
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The Chenab Times News Desk
