P VENKATESWARLU Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) (judgment of the Bench delivered by Kondaiah, J.) This batch of applications by the petitioners detenus, under Art 226 of the Constitution of India, for the issuance of writs of Habeas Corpus, gives rise to a short but interesting and Important question of law relating to the scope, meaning and impact of the provisions of sub-section (3) of Section 3 substituted for sub-sections (3) and (4) of Section 3 of the Maintenance of Internal Security Act, 1971 (hereinafter called the MISA) and applicable to the case of a detenu in respect of whom a declaration contemplated under sub-section (3) of Sec. 16-A has been made.

(2.) Ail the petitioners herein have been arrested and detained under the provisions of Section 3 of the MISA by virtue of orders of detention made by either by the State Government or by Officers subordinate to it and specified in sub-section (2) of Section 3. Declarations under Sub-Section (3) of Sec. 16-A that It is necessary to detain all the petitioners-detenus herein have been made. We may conveniently dispose of all these writ petitions hy a common Judgment.

(3.) As Sri P. Venkateswarlu, the petitioner in W. P. No 4679/75 has led the arguments on behalf of himself and others and the points raised in his writ Pitition are comprehensive and as some of the points involved in all the writ petitions are common, we prefer to refer to the statement of facts in W.P. No. 4679/1975. The petitioner is an advocate practising in this Court He was arrested at about 1-30 A.M on June, 26, 1975, pursuant to an order of detention passed by the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad. He was kept in a Police Station till 7 A.M when he was served with the order of detention and removed to the Central jail, Hyderabad. The proclamation of Emergency under Art. 352 of the Constitution of India was made by the President of India as on June 25. 1975. The first Maintenance of Internal Security (Amendment) Ordinance, 1975 was promulgated on June 29, 1975 whereas the promulgation of the second Maintenance of Internal Security (Amendment) Ordinance 1975 was made on July. 15, 1975. Section 16-A of the MISA was inserted by the first amendment Ordinance. Section 6 of the second Amendment Ordinance shall be deemed to be in force on the 25th day of June 1975 and the remaining provisions cf the Ordinance came into force on the 29th day of June, 1975. The Maintenance of Internal Security (Amendment) Act (39 of 1975) was creacted on 5-8-1975, This Act comprehensively replaces both the aforesaid Ordinances promulgated by the President. The order of detention passed against the detenu by the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad on 26-6 1975 has been revoked by the State Government in G.O.Rt. No, 2919 dated August 16. 1975 but however, a fresh order of detention was passed by the State Government under Section 3 (i) (a) (ii) read with Section 16-A(3)of the MiSA on the same day in G. O.Rt.No. 2920 with a view to prevent him from acting in a manner prejudicial to the maintenance of public order and also to effectively deal with the emergency. The petitioner challenges the validity of the impugned order in G.O.Rt.No. 2920 dated August 16, 1975 on several grounds.