New Delhi: The Supreme Court Monday asked the Centre to make its stand clear on the status of a Pakistani national who has been languishing in a detention centre for seven years as Islamabad refuses to accept him as its citizen, saying how long can you keep a person inside?

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant asked Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj to seek instruction whether 62-year-old Mohammad Qamar can be released for a brief period to enable him to apply for Indian citizenship as his five-children are Indian citizens.

Nataraj said, This is a peculiar case. I need to take instruction. We are not bound by what Pakistan is saying. A person convicted under the Foreigners Act has to be kept in a detention centre. He cannot be allowed to go out. This is the statutory requirement .

The bench said, Question is that he has served his sentence of 3 years and six months. Now after serving his sentence, he has been lodged in a detention centre since 2015, awaiting his deportation. At the time, when Pakistan has refused to accept him as its citizen, how long can you keep a person inside?

It said that Qamar has said that he wishes to apply for Indian citizenship as his children are all Indian citizens.

You please take instructions, whether he can be released for a brief period, so that he can apply for Indian citizenship. Granting citizenship is your call, we are not going to interfere with that , the bench said, and posted the matter for further hearing after three weeks.

Senior advocate Sanjay Parikh, appearing for Qamar’s children, who have sought their father’s release from the detention centre, pointed to an order of the top court by which it had directed the Centre to release detenues in the detention centres of Assam who had been lodged for more than two years in view of the pandemic.

Earlier, this month the top court had sought Centre’s reply on the plea filed by Qamar’s children.

Mohammad Qamar, 62, was arrested on August 8, 2011 from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, and was held guilty by a court here for overstaying his visa. He was sentenced to three years and six months in jail and a fine of Rs 500.

Having completed his sentence on February 6, 2015, Qamar, was sent to the detention centre at Lampur in Narela here on February 7, 2015 for deportation to Pakistan. However, the Pakistan government did not accept his deportation and he is still languishing at the detention centre.

According to his daughter and son, who have moved the top court through advocate Srishti Agnihotri, their father Qamar alias Mohammad Kamil was born in India in 1959.

He (Qamar) had gone with his mother from India to Pakistan as a child of around 7-8 years in 1967-1968 on a visa to meet his relatives there. However, his mother died there, and he remained in Pakistan in the care of his relatives , the plea of habeas corpus filed in the top court said.

It said that Qamar, on attaining adulthood, came back to India on a Pakistani passport in around 1989-1990 and got married to Shehnaaj Begum, an Indian citizen, in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.

Out of this wedlock, five children were born , the plea said, adding that Qamar has no documentary proof to show that he had gone with his mother to Pakistan in around 1967-68 and his mother died there and therefore, his story has not been believed.

Nevertheless, the undisputed fact is that he came to India around 1989-90 on a passport of Pakistan and did not renew his visa due to lack of education and, subsequently, got married here, it said.

In Meerut, he was doing menial jobs and residing there along with his family, who all have Aadhaar cards issued by UIDAI, the plea said.

Initially, Qamar filed a plea before the Delhi High Court in 2017, praying for his release so that he can stay with his family.

During arguments, his counsel had submitted that Qamar would apply for Indian citizenship in accordance with law and also make a representation to the respective authorities giving particulars of all the family members who would stand security in case he is released from the detention centre.

The High Court, in its order dated March 9, 2017, disposed of his plea directing that his representation be considered as per law.

Qamar’s son, as per the order of the High Court, made a representation to civil authority on August 11, 2017, under the provisions of the Foreigners Act to allow his father to reside with his family and take proper steps for registering him as an Indian citizen and also for getting proper medical treatment for his illness.

The plea said, meanwhile, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the top court on April 13, 2020 passed an order in the suo motu petition where it directed the Centre to release foreigner detainees who have been under detention for two years or more on certain terms on furnishing a bond in the sum of Rs. 5,000 with two sureties of the like sum of Indian citizens.

Once again, Qamar’ children moved the High Court seeking relief on the grounds of orders of the top court, where the Centre submitted that it was prepared to take a humanitarian approach for releasing the father of the petitioners, but Uttar Pradesh was not willing to do the same.

It had put on record UP government’s reply which said that Qamar is divorced and therefore, there is no justifiable ground for him to live in India and his release from the detention centre is not recommended.

Thereafter, the High Court said that the petitioners should approach the top court for relief.

New Delhi: The Indian Air Force on Saturday decided to pull out of a multilateral air exercise in the UK next month in view of the situation arising out of the crisis in Ukraine, officials said.

The decision to not participate in the ‘Cobra Warrior’ exercise came just three days after the IAF announced that five Tejas light combat aircraft would be sent for the drills from March 6 to 27 at Waddington in the UK.

The IAF on Saturday morning tweeted that it has decided not to deploy its aircraft for exercise in the UK in “light of the recent events”. However, the tweet was deleted later.

Though there was no reason given why the tweet was deleted, officials said the decision to not participate in the exercise stands.

“The IAF is not participating in the exercise ‘Cobra Warrior’,” said a senior official.

The pull-out came amid a deepening crisis in Ukraine with Russian troops advancing on Kyiv and other key cities.

The decision also came hours after India abstained from voting on a UN Security Council resolution on the Russian military aggression against Ukraine.

Official sources said by abstaining from the resolution, India retained the option of reaching out to all relevant sides to find a middle ground and foster dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the crisis.

On Wednesday, the IAF announced that it will participate in the ‘Cobra Warrior’ exercise with a fleet of five Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA).

The IAF had said that the exercise ‘Cobra Warrior 22’ was aimed at providing operational exposure and sharing best practices amongst the participating air forces.

In a statement, It had said that the exercise would be a platform for the indigenously developed Tejas aircraft to demonstrate their manoeuvrability and operational capability.

“The exercise is aimed at providing operational exposure and sharing best practices amongst the participating air forces, thereby enhancing combat capability and forging bonds of friendship,” it had said.

New Delhi: In a relief to people travelling together in private vehicles in Delhi, the DDMA in an order on Saturday said no penalty will be imposed on them if found without masks.

A senior Delhi government officer said the relaxation will not be applicable for people travelling together in cabs and taxis which are public transport vehicles. Occupants of government vehicles will be exempted from the rule, he said.

“…in relation to the clause 3(h) (c) whereby not wearing of face mask/cover in all public places has been made an offence, the penalty under this provision will not be applicable to persons travelling together in private four wheeler vehicles from February 28,” the order said.

Earlier this month, the authority also exempted single occupants in four wheelers from wearing face masks.

The penalty for not wearing masks in public places was reduced from Rs 2,000 to Rs 500 at a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Friday. An order issued by the DDMA on Saturday stated the fine for not wearing face masks will be Rs 500 from February 28.

The DDMA meeting chaired by Lt Governor Anil Baijal and attended by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also lifted all COVID related restrictions.

The order said the blended/hybrid mode (online and offline) of learning in government schools and requiring consent from parents will be followed till March 31. The apex COVID-19 management body in the national capital has allowed physical classes only from April 1.

With the DDMA order, the restrictions that have continued so far will end, like only one weekly market permitted in a municipal zone, no standing passengers allowed in buses and Metro trains, 50 per cent cap on seating capacity in restaurants, bars and cinemas and no activity except weddings in banquet halls.

Also, restrictions on having more than 200 people in wedding and funeral-related gatherings, and ban on entry of visitors in religious places, closure of sports complexes and swimming pools will also be lifted from Monday.

The Delhi High Court had on February 2 directed the DDMA to look into the several orders issued by it for COVID-19 protocols.

The DDMA reviewed the COVID-19 situation in Delhi on Friday and observed that “numbers of COVID-19 cases and positivity rate have declined significantly, also the occupancy of beds in hospitals is very low and the situation has vastly improved”.

So, it was decided to remove all the restrictions in NCT of Delhi imposed by the DDMA, said the order.

The Union Home Ministry had also directed state and UT governments for re-opening of economic and social activities on risk assessment based approach.

While allowing all activities, guidelines for wearing of masks, maintaining social distancing, hand hygiene and ventilation in closed spaces will continue to be enforced as mandated in National Directives for COVID Management, the DDMA has directed.

It asked all district magistrates, district DCPs and other authorities to focus on strategic areas of intervention — containment, testing, tracking and surveillance, clinical management, vaccination as well as strict compliance of Covid appropriate behaviour in their jurisdiction.