J&K: 144 minors, including 9-year-olds, were detained since August

On August 5, the BJP moved a Bill to revoke Article 370, which gifted special status to J&K. The Bill was smoothly passed and the state was bifurcated into two UTs.

But to deal with any violent aftermath of this historic decision, the Centre put the Valley under unprecedented security cover.

The forces also launched a crackdown on elements who could disrupt peace.

The lockdown in J&K prompted Child Rights Activist Enakshi Ganguly and Santha Sinha to approach Supreme Court. They claimed minors were being detained and tortured.

Thereafter, the top court asked J&K's JJ Committee for a report, which in turn sought information from state agencies.

The four-member committee was headed by Justice AM Magrey and included Justices DS Thakur, Sanjeev Kumar, and Rashid Ali Dar.

The state's DGP submitted a report to the committee and denied holding any child captive illegally.

"No child has been kept or taken into illegal detention by the Police authorities as strict adherence is placed on the provisions of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act," the report added.

The police also refuted media reports as "fictional imagination" and "sensationalism".

Reportedly, 86 of the 144 minors were detained under Preventive Detention provisions of the Criminal procedure Code.

An 11-year-old was picked up on August 5 from Batamaloo. Another 9-year-old was detained from the same area, two days later. All the minors were released on the same day, claimed police.

The JJ Committee said it received no pleas on the alleged detention of juveniles.

Meanwhile, the J&K administration revoked the detention order and released a minor last week, who was booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA). The stringent Act clearly states that it should not be evoked on minors.

The juvenile was arrested from his home on August 4, and four days later PSA was slapped on him.

Later, he was shifted to Uttar Pradesh.