A TOWLAT NISHA Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) CHALLENGE in this Habeas Corpus Petition is to the detention order whereby the Petitioner's husband Ahamed Kabeer has been detained under Prevention of Black-marketing and Maintenance of Supply of Essential Commodities Act - Act 7/1980 [for short, 'Pre-Black Act'].

(2.) FACTS which led to the detention order are as follows:- On 24.02.2007 at 3 p.m., Inspector of Police Civil Supplies CID Erode, along with police party intercepted a Tata Sumo vehicle which was driven by the detenu. On searching the vehicle, it was found that 30 bags of PDS rice was being transported. On being interrogated, the detenu had given a voluntary confession statement, and the rice bags were seized under cover of a Seizure Mahazar. Case was registered in Cr.No.96/2007 under Sec.6(4) of T.N.S.C.(RDCS) Order 1982 r/w 7(1)a(ii) of E.C.Act 1955.

(3.) NEXT ground of challenge raised is that the Detaining Authority formed subjective satisfaction on the basis of extraneous materials. In the grounds of detention, the Detaining Authority has referred to confession statement which states about the detenu's involvement in other cases, where he has been actually detained under Goonda's Act and the subjective satisfaction based on extraneous materials has the effect of vitiating the detention order. The learned Addl. Public Prosecutor has drawn our attention to the confession statement in which the detenu has narrated about his involvement in other cases. By a plain reading of grounds of detention, we find that relevant portion in paragraph 3 of grounds of detention narrate confession statement. It cannot be said that the Detaining Authority arrived at the subjective satisfaction on the basis of certain statements made in confession statement so as to verify the correctness of the same.