Babar Qadri murder case:

HC dismisses Mian Qayoom’s habeas corpus petition
Srinagar, Feb 19: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bench in Srinagar today dismissed the habeas corpus writ petition filed by Advocate Mian Abdul Qayoom, former President of the High Court Bar Association (HCBA) Kashmir. Qayoom is an accused in the much-publicized Babar Qadri murder case.
Qayoom was arrested by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) on June 25, 2024, after being identified as the main conspirator behind the murder of Babar Qadri, a young lawyer who was gunned down by terrorists on September 24, 2020, at his residence in Zahidpora, Hawal, Srinagar.
In response, Mian Qayoom challenged the legality of his arrest by the SIA and his subsequent remands by the trial court through a habeas corpus writ petition filed before the Srinagar Wing of the J&K High Court (HCP No. 331 of 2024) on October 8, 2024. The petition was filed by Advocate Sakal Bhushan, a prominent Supreme Court lawyer.
The SIA, in its objections, strongly opposed the petition, presenting substantial oral, documentary, and digital evidence that implicated Mian Qayoom in the crime. Senior Additional Advocate General Advocate Mohsin Qadri represented the respondent SIA in court.
Justice Vinod Chatterjee Koul, while dismissing the petition today, upheld both the arrest of Mian Qayoom by the SIA SIT and his subsequent remands granted by the Special Court designated under the NIA Act in Jammu.
The trial and proceedings of Case FIR No. 62/2020, which pertains to the Babar Qadri murder case, were transferred from Srinagar to Jammu by the High Court of J&K in December 2023. This decision came after the family members of the deceased victim, Babar Qadri, reported threats and intimidation in Kashmir.