INSAN ALI Vs. SUPERINTENDENT CENTRAL PRISONS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Insan Ali has filed this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying for quashing of the detention order dated 14th November 1991 passed under Section 3 of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act (COFEPOSA) by the State of Uttar Pradesh.

(2.) It appears that on 2.4.199 1, truck bearing registration No. UMC 8111 was interrupted in District Bahraich on which eight persons including the petitioner were found travelling. On search of the truck, foreign goods consisting of torches, bulb, video cassettes and balm etc. worth Rs. 1,88,700/- were recovered. There was no licence or permit of proof of payment of excise duty and, therefore, prima facie it was taken for granted by the custom authorities seizing the truck that the said goods were smuggled into the country without any valid permit

(3.) Sri Daya Shanker Misra, learned Counsel for the petitioner has raised primarily only one ground and that is that the petitioner was produced before the Magistrate at Allahabad who initially rejected the bail because the petitioner was wanted in a case registered under the Customs Act, but his bail application was allowed by this Court on 14.6.1991 and therefore, there is no explanation at almost to why detention order was passed after exactly five months of the release of the petitioner by the order of the High Court. There were two other questions ancillary raised and these are that the order of detention was served on the petitioner on 9.1.1992 for which there is no valid explanation as nothing prevented the opposite parties from effecting the order within reasonable period counted from 14.11.1991, and secondly that the detaining authority being already in the know of the bail order, could not necessarily have delayed the passing of the detention order till about five months of the release of the petitioner on bail.