SATISH GUPTA GURHA Vs. REX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Satish Gopal Gurha and Jag-dish Prasad were taken into custody arid detained under Section 3, U. P. Maintenance of Public Order (Temporary) Act, 1947 (U. p. Act IV [4] of 1947) by orders dated 26th February 1948 and 22nd March 1948, respectively. In either case the period of detention was six months.

(2.) Both the applicants filed applications under Section 491, Criminal P. C, which came up for orders before my brother Wanchoo who dismissed them on 11th May 1948. The only point then urged before him was that the order of detention was illegal as the authority detaining the applicants could pass an order for detention for a period of fifteen days only and no more.

(3.) On 8th June 1948 a fresh application was filed on behalf of the applicants and the point urged in this application is that the grounds and particulars that were supplied to the applicants under Section 5 of the Act were vague and, as such, the detention of the applicants was illegal. It may be mentioned that the grounds and particulars had been supplied to the applicants long before the date when they moved their first application under Section 491, Criminal P. C. so that they could have also urged, if they so desired, that point before this Court when the first application was heard and disposed of on 11th May 1948. The application came up before Wanchoo J. on 20th July 1948 and as he considered that the point raised a question of general importance he directed that the question whether a second application can be heard in the circumstances mentioned above may be decided by a larger Bench.