SANJEEV KUMAR Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Sec. 3 of the Bihar Control of Crimes Act, 1981 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') confers upon the District Magistrate a jurisdiction to pass an order, inter alia, directing a person, who is an 'anti-social element' within the meaning of Sec. 2(d) of the Act, to remove himself outside the district or part thereof, as the case may be, by such route, if any, and within such time as may be specified in the order and to resist him from entering the district or the specified part thereof, until, the expiry of such period, not exceeding six months as may be specified in the order; should the conditions specified under the said Sec. exist.

(2.) It is in the exercise of said power under Sec. 3 of the Act that the District Magistrate, Sheohar passed an order of externment dtd. 17/8/2021 in Case No. 7 of 2021 against the petitioner requiring him to remove himself from the district of Sheohar and to leave the jurisdiction of Piprahi Police Station from 17/8/2021 to 17/2/2022. By the said order, he had further been directed to remain physically present before Fenhara Police Station in the district of East Champaran every day, between 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 O'clock during the aforesaid period of externment i.e. 17/8/2021 to 17/2/2022. The said order of the District Magistrate, Sheohar dtd. 17/8/2021 is under challenge in the present writ application filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

(3.) Evidently, the period of externment came to an end on 17/2/2022. This writ petition was filed soon after the impugned order was passed and came to be formally registered on 7/10/2021. One of the stands, which has been taken on behalf of the respondents to oppose the maintainability of the present writ application, is that since the period of externment has already expired, this writ petition has become infructuous and no useful purpose would be served by entertaining the writ petition, any more.