The Supreme Court on Wednesday deferred the hearing of a plea filed by Gitanjali Angmo challenging the detention of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk under the National Security Act (NSA) to October 29.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria deferred the plea after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Wangchuk’s wife, said she wanted to amend her appeal.
The Bench allowed her to amend the plea challenging Wangchuk’s preventive detention to address the grounds of confinement supplied by the Central government.
Gitanjali had filed the habeas corpus petition seeking her husband’s release on the basis that no grounds of detention had been given by the detaining authorities.
During the hearing, Sibal sought time and permission to amend the plea so that the grounds of detention supplied by the government could now be challenged.
Sibal also said that Wangchuk was not allowed to share his notes with his wife, adding: “He has made certain notes on the detention which he wanted to pass to the lawyer for his wife.”
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said he had no problem with the notes being shared with the wife, but argued that the delay in providing the grounds of detention should not, by itself, become a ground to challenge the detention.
Meanwhile, the Leh administration, while terming the detention as justified, said climate activist Sonam Wangchuk had indulged in “activities prejudicial to the security of the state, maintenance of public order, and essential services,” which led to his detention under the National Security Act. The Leh District Magistrate told the Supreme Court that: “I was satisfied and continue to be satisfied with the detention of the detainee.”
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