KACHARU RAM NIADER MAL Vs. DISTRICT MAGISTRATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution and Section 491, Criminal procedure Code, for a writ in the nature of habeas corpus for the production of. the petitioner and for his release from detention.

(2.) BY an order dated 23rd September, 1964, which appears to be on the usual cyclo-styled form, the District Magistrate of Delhi directed the detention of the petitioner in the Central Jail, Tehar, New Delhi under Rule 30 of the Defence of india Rules, 1962. In the order it was stated that the District Magistrate was satisfied from information received that it was necessary to detain the petitioner with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the maintainance of public order. In the petition as originally filed in January 1965, all that was stated by the petitioner was that he was being detained by the District magistrate without any reasons having been given for his detention and that the usual procedure for the trial and punishment of offences had not been followed. This petition was admitted on 27th January, 1965 by Falshaw, C. J. and Mehar singh, J. and the detenu was ordered to be produced on 8th February 1965. The district Magistrate filed an affidavit dated 6th February 1965 saying that the petitioner had figured in as many as 24 cases since 1946 and had been convicted in a number of them. In Para. 2 of that affidavit, it was stated:

(3.) THE facts which emerged out of the various affidavits thus filed by the District magistrate have been stated by the learned Single Judge in his order of reference to Full Bench dated 10th March, 1965 and may be reproduced in his own words: