Agencies:

Mehbooba Mufti released yesterday night after more than a year in detention

Srinagar
October 14, 2020

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was released late Tuesday night after being detained by the government for nearly 14 months - since it scrapped Article 370 in August - and since being charged under the Public Safety Act (PSA) - a stringent law that allows detention and multiple extensions without trial for up to three months - in February.

"Ms Mehbooba Mufti being released," Rohit Kansal, J&K Principal Secretary, tweeted at 9.17 pm.

In an audio message tweeted late Tuesday night from her official Twitter handle, Mehbooba Mufti is heard saying: "Today, I have been released after more than a year. All this while, the black day - August 5, 2019 - continued to assault my soul. I believe, all people in Jammu and Kashmir would be feeling the same way. None of us can forget the insult we were made to face that day."

The release comes just as a deadline set by the Supreme Court, which had been approached by her daughter Iltija Mufti with a habeas corpus petition challenging her "illegal" detention, was set to expire.