Senior advocate Mohammad Ashraf Bhat arrested under PSA in Srinagar

SRINAGAR — Senior advocate and former general secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association, Mohammad Ashraf Bhat, has been arrested from his residence in Rawalpora, officials confirmed on Thursday.

Bhat was arrested late Wednesday night and subsequently booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA).

Following his arrest, Bhat was transferred to Kathua jail in the Jammu region. His arrest marks the third senior official of the Bar Association to be detained under similar circumstances.

Last week, former Bar Association president Nazir Ahmad Ronga was also arrested and booked under the PSA. Additionally, another former president, Mian Abdul Qayoom, was detained last month in relation to the 2020 murder of Advocate Babar Qadri by militants.