Wednesday the Supreme Court adjourned the hearing of a plea by Gitanjali J Angmo, the wife of imprisoned climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, challenging his detention under the National Security Act (NSA) to January 8. The matter was adjourned by a bench headed by Justices Aravind Kumar and P. B. Varale, with Justice Kumar saying, Tomorrow? My brother insisted on going through this issue. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal acting on behalf of Sonam Wangchuk accepted the suggestion.
The plea argues that the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk is unlawful, arbitrary and amounts to the breach of his fundamental rights as provided under the Constitution. It is petitioning to escape what his legal team deems as unwarranted exercise of power under the NSA.
This case has been pending the Supreme Court several weeks. A court of Justices, headed by Aravind Kumar and N. V. Anjaria, had earlier heard it. On November 24, the court had adjourned the hearing after the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was representing the Centre and the Union Territory of Ladakh, sought some more time to respond to rejoinder submitted by Gitanjali Angmo. The rejoinder claimed that the detention of Wangchuk was not legally or factually based citing the issue of due process and constitutional protection.
The first petition was submitted on October 29 in which Angmo has revised her plea to request the court intervention to have her husband released on grounds of irregularities and inadequate justification in applying the NSA. The Supreme Court had ordered the Centre and the Ladakh administration to submit their answers to the amended plea with an enquiry on the basis and legality of the detention.
The break until January 8 gives both sides an opportunity to study the submissions and come up with their arguments as the court still analyzes the issue of national security considerations and fundamental rights of individuals in this high-profile case involving the climate activist.
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