A couple of letters accessed by NDTV revealed that Hurriyat hardliner Masrat Alam was released because his detention had become void in absence of timed approval of his preventive custody by the Centre and not because the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed wanted him out of jail.
The letters stated that the decision on his release was being processed during central government's rule in J&K, days before the PDP-BJP coalition government came to power in the state, according to NDTV report.
It was on 4 February that the J&K Home Secretary Suresh Kumar wrote to the Jammu District Magistrate informing him that Alam's detention, which was issued in September 2014 under the Public Safety Act (PSA), became invalid as the Home Department failed to confirm it within 12 days time.
"The period of twelve days in the instant case has already elapsed, as such, the detention order has become non-est in the eyes of law," the letter said. The District Magistrate had then informed the Home Department that they had no fresh case against Alam to detain him further.
At this juncture when J&K was under governor's rule for 49 days, it was the central government which needed to interfere to prevent the Kashmiri separatist's release.
In absence of response from either state or Central Home Ministry, Jammu District Magistrate wrote a letter to the police on 4 March asking them to release Alam as his preventive detention had "not been approved by the government".
These revelations may prove as a major setback to the BJP, which failed to prevent the Kashmiri separatist's release on Saturday despite being alerted when the state was going through the procedure of granting permission for his release.
The opposition lashed out at BJP as the order was released by Mufti Sayeed-led PDP-BJP coalition government in the state. Amid several attacks from the opposition leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had said that PDP had not consulted them before passing the orders.
