Madras High Court
M.Jeyalakshmi vs The State Of Tamil Nadu on 3 October, 2023
H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED: 03.10.2023
Coram
THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE M.SUNDAR
and
THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R.SAKTHIVEL
H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
M.Jeyalakshmi,
W/o.Muthukumar,
6-12, North Amman Kovil Street,
Kangamoolam Puthukudiyiruppu,
Thovalai,
Kanniyakumari District. .. Petitioner
vs
1.The State of Tamil Nadu,
Represented by the Secretary to Government,
Home, Prohibition and Excise Department,
Secretariat,
Chennai – 600 009.
2.The District Collector and District Magistrate,
Kanniyakumari District,
Nagercoil.
3.The Superintendent of Prison,
Central Prison,
Palayamkottai,
Tirunelveli. .. Respondents
Prayer:- Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying
for issuance of a writ of Habeas Corpus calling for the entire records
connected with the detention order passed in P.D.No.18 of 2023 dated
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05.04.2023 on the file of the second respondent herein and quash the same
and direct the respondents to produce the detenu or body of the detenu
namely the petitioner's son i.e., Praveen, aged about 23 years,
S/o.Muthukumar, now detained at the Central Prison, Palayamkottai before
this Court and set him at liberty forthwith.
For Petitioner : Mr.N.Pragalathan
For Respondents : Mr.A.Thiruvadi Kumar
Additional Public Prosecutor
ORDER
[Order of the Court was made by M.SUNDAR, J.]
Captioned 'Habeas Corpus Petition' ['HCP' for the sake of
brevity] has been filed by the mother of the detenu assailing a 'preventive
detention order dated 05.04.2023 bearing reference P.D.No.18 of
2023' [hereinafter 'impugned preventive detention order' for the sake of
brevity and convenience'] made by 'second respondent' [hereinafter
'Detaining Authority' for the sake of convenience and clarity]. To be noted,
sponsoring authority has not been arrayed as a respondent but we find that
Station House Officer of Aralvoimozhy Police Station is the sponsoring
authority [hereinafter 'Sponsoring Authority' for the sake of convenience and
clarity].
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H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
2.Captioned HCP has been admitted by Hon'ble Coordinate
Division Bench in the Admission Board on 04.05.2023.
3.Impugned detention order has been made under 'The Tamil
Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Cyber law
offenders, Drug-offenders, Forest-offenders, Goondas, Immoral traffic
offenders, Sand-offenders, Sexual-offenders, Slum-grabbers and Video
Pirates Act, 1982 (Tamil Nadu Act No.14 of 1982)' [hereinafter 'Act 14 of
1982' for the sake of convenience and clarity] on the premise that the detenu
is a 'Goonda' within the meaning of Section 2(f) of Act 14 of 1982.
4.There is no adverse case. This solitary case which is the sole
substratum of the impugned preventive detention order is Crime No.54 of
2023 on the file of Aralvoimozhy Police Station for alleged offences under
Sections 341 and 302 of 'The Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860)' [hereinafter
'IPC' for the sake of convenience and clarity] and subsequently altered into
sections 147, 148, 341, 294(b) and 302 of IPC. Considering to the nature of
the challenge to the impugned detention order, it is not necessary to delve
into the factual matrix of the case.
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H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
5.Mr.N.Pragalathan, learned counsel on record for petitioner and
Mr.A.Thiruvadi Kumar, learned State Additional Public Prosecutor for all
respondents are before us.
6.In the support affidavit qua captioned HCP very many points
have been raised but Mr.N.Pragalathan, learned counsel for HCP petitioner
(to be noted detenu is the son of HCP petitioner) in the final hearing today
raised a point that 'live and proximate link' between grounds of detention and
purpose of detention has snapped. Elaborating his argument in this direction,
learned counsel submitted that even according to grounds of detention and
the impugned preventive detention order, the date of arrest in the ground
case is 17.02.2023 and the impugned preventive detention order has been
made on 05.04.2023. It was pointed out that the ground case is a solitary case
which constituted the sole substratum of the impugned preventive detention
order. As a legal principle, a recent Judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court
(Sushanta Kumar Banik Vs. State of Tripura & others reported in 2022
Livelaw (SC) 813 : 2022 SCC Online SC 1333) was pressed into service.
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H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
7.Learned Additional Public Prosecutor submitted that
materials had to be collected and time was consumed in this exercise.
8.We have carefully considered the rival submissions.
9.We find that collection and collation of records cannot be the
convincing explanation qua live and proximate link between grounds of
detention and purpose of detention getting snapped.
10.Banik principle has been respectfully followed by this Court
and one such order is order dated 20.06.2023 made in H.C.P.No.72 of 2023
which was pressed into service by learned counsel for HCP petitioner. The
scanned reproduction of the same is as follows:-
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11.We find that the case on hand is one where the substratum of
the impugned preventive detention order is constituted by a solitary case and
therefore we sustain the submission of the HCP petitioner.
12.Ergo, the sequitur is, captioned HCP is allowed. Impugned
detention order dated 05.04.2023 bearing reference P.D.No.18 of 2023 made
by the second respondent is set aside and the detenu Thiru.Praveen, aged 23
years, son of Thiru.Muthukumar, is directed to be set at liberty forthwith, if
not required in connection with any other case/cases. There shall be no order
as to costs.
(M.S.,J.) (R.S.V.,J.)
03.10.2023
Index : Yes/No
Neutral Citation : Yes/No
ps
P.S: Registry to forthwith communicate this order to Jail authorities in
Central Prison, Palayamkottai.
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H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
To
1.The Secretary to Government,
Home, Prohibition and Excise Department,
Secretariat,
Chennai – 600 009.
2.The District Collector and District Magistrate,
Kanniyakumari District,
Nagercoil.
3.The Superintendent of Prison,
Central Prison,
Palayamkottai,
Tirunelveli.
4.The Additional Public Prosecutor,
Madurai Bench of Madras High Court,
Madurai.
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H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
M.SUNDAR, J.,
and
R.SAKTHIVEL, J.,
ps
H.C.P(MD)No.551 of 2023
03.10.2023
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