Srinagar: Mehraj Malik, the only Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator in Jammu and Kashmir, has been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA) for one year, making him the first sitting MLA in the Union Territory to face action under the stringent law.
Police said Malik, who represents the Doda constituency, has been sent to Bhaderwah jail. He is named in 18 FIRs and 16 daily diary reports across different police stations in Doda district. Officials alleged he had increasingly been disrupting public order, particularly at a time when the administration was engaged in relief work following recent heavy rains and flash floods in the area.
The 36-year-old legislator is accused of attacking government officials, locking them inside their offices, using abusive language, intimidating them in public, and even facing charges of abduction. Recently, a video showed him allegedly abusing Doda Deputy Commissioner Harvinder Singh over the relocation of a health sub-centre. Earlier in May, police filed a case against him for using derogatory language against a woman doctor at Doda Government Medical College.
Despite his detention, Malik will retain his Assembly membership as he has not been convicted in any of the pending cases.
Malik entered the Assembly in 2024 after defeating BJP’s Gajay Singh from Doda, giving AAP its maiden win in Jammu and Kashmir. He earlier served as a District Development Council (DDC) member from Kahara and has been active in raising local issues such as water supply, electricity, health facilities, and absenteeism in government offices.
A postgraduate from Jammu, Malik contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as an Independent from Udhampur but finished fourth. He has been associated with AAP since 2013 and currently serves as co-chairman of its state coordination committee.
