TUKARAM BIRAPPA PUJARI Vs. COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Detention Order dtd. 3/4/2024, passed by the District Magistrate, Solapur, has ordered detention of the petitioner -Tukaram Birappa Pujari, as he alongwith his accomplices dissuaded Government public servants from their work by intimidation and they engaged themselves in illegally extracting of sand, and thereafter in smuggling, stealing and sending the stolen sand for sale from a vehicle and thereby destroying the environment.

(2.) We have heard the learned counsel Mr.Thobde appearing for the Petitioner, who by inviting our attention to the grounds of Detention, has argued before us that the material relied upon by the Detaining Authority i.e. the subject CR, and the two in -camera statements have failed to make out a case that, his activities are prejudicial to the maintenance of public order, as there is nothing brought on record to establish that he is engaged or he is making preparation for engaging in any of his activities as a sand smuggler, which has affected or likely to affect adversely the maintenance of public order.

(3.) The Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Slumlords, Bootleggers, Drug - Offenders, Dangerous Persons, Video Pirates, Sand Smugglers and Persons engaged in Black Marketing of Essential Commodities Act, 1981 (MPDA Act), is an act to provide for preventive detention of various categories of persons, one of the category being of "Sand Smugglers", for preventing their dangerous activities prejudicial to the maintenance of public order. Each of the category is specifcally assigned a distinct meaning in the Act, by providing a defnition and as far as Sand Smuggler is concerned, Sec. 2(e-2) of the MPDA Act, defne the term as below: