Srinagar, July 10 -- The High Court of J&K and Ladakh on Wednesday held a J&K Police officer of committing disrespect of the Supreme Court of India by arresting a Jammu resident and not exercising his powers judiciously as laid out by the apex court.

Pronouncing his judgment in the Iqbal Singh V/s Pankaj Sharma {Station House Officer (SHO) Police Station, Gandhi Nagar Jammu}, Justice Vinod Chatterji Koul recorded "the respondent (SHO) is held guilty of noncompliance of the directions contained in Arnesh Kumar vs. State of Bihar and others, and, therefore, has committed the contempt of the court".

The 2014 order is a landmark judgement about the powers of arrest enunciated by the top court of India. It lays down the guidelines for police...