MADAN LAL Vs. SUPERINTENDENT TEHAR JAIL, DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) MADAN Lal has approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India complaining against the arrest and detention of Bhagwan Dass Shastri and praying that the said Bhagwan Dass Shastri be directed to be produced in this Court and be dealt with in accordance with law. His detention is stated to be illegal and improper. It may be pointed out that originally Madan Lal had complained against the arrest and detention of 1,057 persons mentioned in Part. 1 of the petition and prayed for their production in this Court on the allegation that they had been illegally arrested and were being illegally and improperly detained. When this original petition came up for preliminary hearing before us at the motion stage, we pointed out to the petitioner that full details of the circumstances in which each individual detainee had been arrested and dealt with should be separately specified and that the manner in which one petition had been filed, tended to create confusion. When confronted with this situation, the petitioner decided to restrict his petition to one person, namely, Bhagwan Dass Shastri at Serial No. 1015. We accordingly allowed the petitioner to amend his petition as desired, with the result that now the present petition is only concerned with the detention of Bhagwan Dass.

(2.) MADAN Lal, claiming to be the best friend of Bhagwan Dass Shastri, who has been described to be the President of Delhi Police Non -gazetted Karamchari Sangh, has averred that the said Bhagwan Dass is being kept in illegal custody by Respondents Nos. 1 to 5. Rule was issued by us on 2.5.1967 for 4.5.1967 and we have before us affidavits in reply sworn by Shri B. B. Mishra, Inspector -General of Police, Delhi and by Shri R. N. Tondon, District Magistrate, Delhi.

(3.) IT may here be stated that this petition is an off -shoot of the happenings which followed the unfortunate agitation inspired by the organisation described as the Delhi Non -gazetted Police Karamchari Sangh. Madan Lal petitioner describes himself to be one of the workers of this Sangh and has in his petition narrated the history of the movement which led to the agitation and culminated in the unprecedented happening on 15.4.1967 outside the residence of Shri Y. B. Chavan, Minister for Home Affairs, Government of India. On that day, a large number of the members of Delhi Police force were arrested ostensibly on the ground of violation of the order promulgated under Section 144, Criminal Procedure Code, and also for committing offences punishable under Section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1932, Sections 188, 353 and 147, Penal Code, Section 3 of the Police Force (Restriction of Rights) Act, Section 3 of the Police (Incitement to Disaffection) Act, 1922, Section 7 of the Essential Services Maintenance Ordinance, 1942 and Section 29 of the Police Act. The short question which falls for determination in the present proceedings is whether Bhagwan Dass is being illegally or improperly detained at the present moment.