J&K police attach properties of ex-Bar chief Mian Abdul Qayoom under UAPA

Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Police on Wednesday formally attached a residential property belonging to Mian Abdul Qayoom, the former president of the Kashmir Bar Association, in connection with a case registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The property, located at Bul Bul Bagh Barzulla in Srinagar, was seized by the police under Sections 38 and 39 of the UAPA. The attachment order was issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP), Nalin Prabhat.

In the formal order, Prabhat stated that evidence gathered by the investigating officer prima facie established that the accused, Mian Abdul Qayoom, had used the residential premises for "concealing incriminatory material and for the furtherance of terrorist activities".

"In exercise of powers conferred by Section 25 of UAPA, prior approval is accorded for attachment of 02 storeyed residential house along with land measuring 02 Kanals, 01 Marla and 90 sqft situated at Bulbul Bagh Barzulla, Srinagar," the order said.

The action was taken in connection with FIR No. 157/2009 registered at Shaheed Gunj police station under Sections 120, 120-B, 121, and 153-A of the Ranbir Penal Code and Sections 13, 38, and 39 of the UAPA, it said.

"The said property registered under mutation no. 338, in the name of Mian Abdul Qayoom, thus falls within the ambit of "proceeds of terrorism" in terms of Section 2(g) of UAPA and is liable to be attached in FIR no. 157/09, of PS Shaheed Gunj, Srinagar," the order said.

Qayoom is currently in prison on charges related to the murder of advocate Babar Qadri.

NIA court frames charges against Qayoom in murder case

In August, a special NIA court framed charges under UAPA against Mian Abdul Qayoom, in connection with the assassination of advocate Babar Qadri in September 2020.

Qayoom, 77, an executive member of separatist amalgam Hurriyat Conference, was arrested on June 25, 2024, as the principal conspirator behind Qadri’s killing, allegedly by terrorists of the proscribed 'The Resistance Front' (TRF), a proxy of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Earlier in February, Qayoom’s habeas corpus petition and his challenge to the arrest and remand process in the case were dismissed by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, reaffirming the legal propriety of the arrest and investigation.

He was taken into custody by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, which took over the case in July 2023, after collecting evidence against him.

Qayoom is the father-in-law of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court judge Justice Javed Iqbal Wani.