SURESH SHAM SINGH Vs. A N ROY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In all these petitions, common questions of law and facts arise and therefore they were heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment. Upon hearing at length the learned Advocates for the parties, rule in all the petitions and by consent, the rule is made returnable forthwith.

(2.) Though the orders issued under section 18 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) act, 1956, hereinafter called as "the said Act" are sought to be challenged on various grounds, it is not necessary to refer to all those grounds and suffice to refer to only one ground which relates to absence of power to the commissioner of Police to issue orders under section 18 of the said Act in the capacity as the District Magistrate.

(3.) In all these petitions, notices have been issued under Section 18 of the said act either for eviction of the occupiers or for imposing conditions for letting out the premises wherein the brothel was alleged to have been run and all those notices have been, admittedly, issued by the Police Commissioner of Mumbai purportedly in exercise of powers of the District Magistrate under the said Act r/w. the provisions of Section 20 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, hereinafter called as "the Code". The contention of the petitioners is that though the Police commissioner can be conferred with the powers of the Executive Magistrate in terms of the provisions of Section 20 (5) of the Code, he cannot either be appointed as the District magistrate or conferred with the powers of the district Magistrate and therefore he cannot act as or perform the functions of the District magistrate under the said Act. Therefore, according to the learned Advocate for the petitioners, the notices issued by the Police commissioner in purported exercise of the powers of the District Magistrate under the said Act are without jurisdiction and therefore bad-in-law and cannot be enforced and therefore needs to be quashed and set aside. In other words, the contention of the petitioners is that the Police Commissioner in the purported exercise of the powers of the District magistrate can neither issue any show cause notice nor can pass any order under Section 18 of the said Act.