A Division Bench of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh at Jammu comprising the Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal has directed Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Govt. of India, New Delhi to file a fresh Affidavit within a period of four weeks indicating the progress in the matter i.e. decision with regard to grant of Prosecution Sanction against the 08 IAS Officers against whom the CBI has prima facie established the offences and culpability for commission of offences under J&K Prevention of Corruption Act in the infamous ‘Arms Licenses Scam’ which was investigated by the Premier Investigating Agency of the Country on the request of Government of J&K.
These directions were passed by the Division Bench headed by the Chief Justice Arun Palli in the much publicized Public Interest Litigation (PIL No. 9/2012) titled Sheikh Mohd. Shafi and Another V/s Union of India and Others wherein the petitioners have highlighted rampant corruption in J&K and non- grant of Prosecution Sanction against High Profile Bureaucrats who are involved in several scams including Arms Licenses Scam.
When this PIL came up for hearing, Advocate S.S. Ahmed with Advocate Supriya Chouhan appearing for the petitioners drew the attention of the Division Bench towards the latest status report dated 24.02.2026 filed by MHA through Eishaan Dadhichi, Central Government Standing Counsel (CGSC) wherein it was submitted that in view of procedural requirements and the necessity to ensure that a well reasoned and legally sustainable decision is taken, the MHA most respectfully prays for further time of four months to complete the process of examination and to take a final decision regarding grant of Sanction for Prosecution.
Advocate S.S. Ahmed vehemently argued that the investigation by the CBI in this infamous scam was completed way back in 2020 and Sanction for Prosecution against JKAS Officers was granted by the then Government of J&K in April, 2021 and more than 15 Chargesheets have already been filed by the CBI against the JKAS Officers, Gun Dealers, middlemen and Judicial Clerks in the Special CBI Designated Courts both at Jammu as well as Srinagar.
Advocate S.S. Ahmed vociferously argued that the High Profile 08 IAS Officers who are occupying prime positions in J&K and AGMUT cadre are exerting undue pressure upon the Sanctioning Authority so that they may get a clean chit in a matter involving National Security. Advocate S.S. Ahmed further submitted that even the Government of J&K in its comments to MHA, has requested that Prosecution Sanction may not be granted against the high profile Bureaucrats involved in Arms Licenses Scam. He further submitted that the CBI in its status report has stated that on monetary considerations, the Arms Licenses (Approx. 2.67 lakhs in Number) for the period 2012–2016 were issued by the JKAS/IAS officers in league with others.
DSGI (Deputy Solicitor General of India) Vishal Sharma with CGSC Anishwar Chatterji Koul appearing for MHA submitted that MHA is seized of the matter and requires 04 months time to arrive at a final decision regarding the grant of Sanction for Prosecution.
The Division Bench comprising the Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal after considering the submissions of both the sides observed, “we are constrained to observe that the petition at hands is being tried in Public Interest and is pending since 2012. But, the matter has not made much progress.”
With these observations, the Division Bench on the request of DSGI Vishal Sharma appearing for MHA deferred the proceedings by four weeks and directed the MHA to file fresh affidavit on or before the adjourned date, indicating the progress in the matter.
Looking into the importance of the matter and Public Interest involved, the Division Bench directed the Registry to re-notify the instant PIL for 09.04.2026.