RAJNI GUPTA Vs. STATE & ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner through medium of present petition, questioned the order No. 17/PSA of 2006 dated 22nd September, 2006 whereby District Magistrate, Jammu-respondent No. 2 herein, ordered preventive detention of Shri Ravinder Gupta alias Gole Shah S/o Suraj Parkash Gupta R/o H. No. 43/7 Greater Kailash, Tehsil and District, Jammu (hereinafter referred to as "detenue") under J&K Public Safety Act, 1978 and directed his lodgment in Central Jail, Jammu.

(2.) The petitioner pleaded that the detenue was not furnished the documents relied upon by the Detaining Authority while making the detention order, that the grounds of detention did not constitute a case for preventive detention of the detenue; that the preventive detention of the detenue was ordered for a period of two years when a person could be detained on the ground of his activities being prejudicial to "public order" for a maximum period of one year; that the preventive detention was outcome of land dispute between the detenue and the respondent no. 6; that the detenue had complained against the respondent no. 6 to his officers and the preventive detention order slapped on the detenue was to silence the detenue and prevent him from prosecuting the complaint made against the respondent. The petitioner assailed the detention order as malafide based on the grounds manipulated by the respondent no. 6 in connivance with respondent no. 7. The petitioner also claimed that the detenue had made a representation against his preventive detention to the Government immediately after the detenue was detained in Central Jail, jammu. The petitioner on the strength of grounds urged in the petition sought quashment of the detention order. The respondents 2 and 6 in their counter affidavit controverted all the averments made in the petition. The respondents maintained that the detenue was notorious land grabber who had grabbed Government and private land by resorting to shabby deals and that the detenue would sell the land grabbed by the detenue to innocent buyers after managing fake documents. The respondents 2 and 7 maintained that the detenue was involved in a number of criminal cases registered at Police Stations Gangyal and Channi Himmat.

(3.) The matter as required under section 14 of J&K Public Safety Act, 1978 was placed before the State Advisory Board. The State Advisory Board on 2nd November, 2006 held that the alleged activities of detenue fell within the arena of "law and order" and did not constitute a ground for preventive detention of the detenue. The State Advisory Board declined to confirm the detention order about three weeks after the detention order was made. The Government vide Order No. Home/PB-V/2416 of 2006 dated 15.11.2006 revoked the detention order and ordered release of the detenue. The matter in wake of aforementioned Government Order ought to have come to an end. However, Shri Ravinder Gupta alias Gole Shah on 11.12.2007, more than a year after his release from preventive detention made an application for his impleadment as petitioner in HC(W) No. 30/2006. The application was allowed vide order dated 03.09.2008 and Shri Ravinder Gupta impleaded as petitioner no. 2 in the Habeas Corpus Petition.