REJINA Vs. SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Since it is a case of solitary incident and the detenus namely R.Gokulakannan @ Gokul, S/o.Ramachandran, aged 23 years and S.Praveen, S/o.Sagayawilson, aged 24 years, are co-accused in Crime No.1798/2018 on the file of E-2 Peelamedu Police Station, Coimbatore City, both the Habeas Corpus Petitions are taken up together and disposed of by a common order.

(2.) The petitioner in HCP.No.2838 of 2018 is the sister of the detenu viz., R.Gokulakannan @ Gokul, S/o.Ramachandran, aged 23 years, and the petitioner in HCP.No.2845 of 2018, is the wife of the detenu namely S.Praveen, S/o.Sagayawilson, aged 24 years and both the petitioners challenging the legality of the impugned orders of detention dated 29.11.2018 and 26.11.2018 respectively passed by the second respondent, in and by which, the detenus were branded as ''Drug Offenders'' under the provisions of Section 3(1) of the Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Boot-leggers, Cyber Law Offenders, Drug Offenders, Forest Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Sand Offenders, Sexual Offenders, Slum-Grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982 (Tamil Nadu Act 14/1982), came forward to file the present Habeas Corpus Petitions.

(3.) A perusal of the grounds of detention would disclose that the impugned orders of detention came to be clamped on a solitary incident. It is stated in the grounds of the detention that on 29.10.2018 at about 15.00 hours, while the Inspector of Police, Law and Order, E-2 Peelamedu Police Station, Coimbatore City, was on duty, the Sub Inspector of Police, Special Team, Coimbatore City appeared before him and stated that on receiving a secret information from the informant, as to trafficking of banned narcotic substance "?Ganja "? at "?Zonal Scientific Centre "? at Peelamedu, Coimbatore, he reached the said place at 15.30 hours along with Special Team of Police. The informant had identified a car bearing Registration No.TN-15-Y-7999, with three persons, and also found some persons sitting in two motorcycles, possessing a bag in a suspicious manner. On seeing the police, all the accused including the detenus tried to escape, but the police secured the accused and they were found in possession of "?Ganja "?. The accused were apprehended and the Inspector of Police, Special Team, after administering statutory warrant, arrested the accused, who later revealed their names and addresses. Thereafter, all the accused along with incriminating articles were brought to E-2 Peelamedu Police Station, Coimbatore City and a case was registered in Cr.No.1798/2018 for the commission of offences under Section 8(c) 25 r/w.20 (b) (ii) ( C) , 25, 27A and 29(1) of NDPS Act 1985 and took up the case for investigation.