Madras High Court
Nila Parik vs State Of Tripura' on 22 January, 2025
Author: S.M.Subramaniam
Bench: S.M.Subramaniam
H.C.P.No.26 of 2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED: 22.01.2025
CORAM :
THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE S.M.SUBRAMANIAM
AND
THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE M.JOTHIRAMAN
H.C.P.No.26 of 2025
Nila Parik
W/o N.Suresh Mahapatra .. Petitioner
v.
1. The Secretary to Government
Home, Prohibition & Excise Department
Secretariat, Fort St.George, Chennai 600 009
2. The Commissioner of Police
Office of the Commissioner of Police
Tambaram City, Chennai
3. The Superintendent of Prison
Central Prison, Puzhal, Chennai
4. The Inspector of Police
Prohibition Enforcement Wing
Tambaram .. Respondents
Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying
for issuance of a Writ of Habeas Corpus, to call for the records pertaining to
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H.C.P.No.26 of 2025
the order of detention passed by the second respondent in his proceedings in
No.102/BCDFGISSSV/2024 dated 28.11.2024 detaining the detenu as Drug
Offender and quash the same as illegal and produce the detenu, namely,
N.Suresh Mahaptra, S/o Nanda Mahaptra, aged 54 years, now confined in
Central Prison, Puzhal II, Chennai before this Hon'ble Court and set him at
liberty.
For Petitioner :: Mr.C.Raja
For Respondents :: Mr.R.Muniyapparaj
Additional Public Prosecutor
ORDER
(Order of the Court was made by S.M.SUBRAMANIAM,J.)
The petitioner, who is the wife of the detenu, viz., N.Suresh
Mahapatra, S/o Nanda Mahapatra, aged 54 years, now confined at Central
Prison, Puzhal, Chennai has come forward with this petition challenging the
detention order passed by the second respondent in proceedings
BCDFGISSSV No.102/2024 dated 28.11.2024.
2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as the learned
Additional Public Prosecutor appearing for the respondents.
3. Though several grounds are raised in the petition, the learned
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counsel for the petitioner submitted that there is an inordinate delay in
passing the order of detention.
4. In the instant case, the detenu was arrested on 28.10.2024 and
thereafter, the detention order came to be passed on 28.11.2024. This fact is
not disputed by the learned Additional Public Prosecutor.
5. In the case of 'Sushanta Kumar Banik Vs. State of Tripura',
reported in '2022 LiveLaw (SC) 813', when there was an inordinate delay
from the date of proposal till passing of the detention order and likewise,
between the date of detention order and the actual arrest, the Hon'ble
Supreme Court had held that the live and proximate link, between the
grounds and the purpose of detention, stands snapped in arresting the detenu.
The relevant observation of the Hon'ble Supreme Court is extracted
hereunder:-
“20. It is manifestly clear from a conspectus of the above
decisions of this Court, that the underlying principle is that if
there is unreasonable delay between the date of the order of
detention & actual arrest of the detenu and in the same manner
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from the date of the proposal and passing of the order of
detention, such delay unless satisfactorily explained throws a
considerable doubt on the genuineness of the requisite subjective
satisfaction of the detaining authority in passing the detention
order and consequently render the detention order bad and
invalid because the “live and proximate link” between the
grounds of detention and the purpose of detention is snapped in
arresting the detenu. A question whether the delay is
unreasonable and stands unexplained depends on the facts and
circumstances of each case.”
6. Drawing inspiration from the judgment in Sushanta Kumar
Banik's case, a co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of 'Gomathi Vs.
Principal Secretary to Government and Others', reported in '2023 SCC
OnLine Mad 6332', had held that when there is an inordinate delay from the
date of arrest/date of proposal till the order of detention, the live and
proximate link between them would also stand snapped and thereby, had
quashed the detention order on this ground.
7. In yet another case i.e., in 'Nagaraj Vs. State of Tamil Nadu',
reported in '(2018) 3 MWN (Cri) 428', this Court had held that the delay of
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36 days in passing the detention order after the arrest of the detenu would
snap the live and proximate link between the grounds and purpose of
detention. Hence, in view of the unexplained and inordinate delay in
passing the order of detention after the arrest of the detenu, the detention
order in the present case is liable to be quashed.
8. Accordingly, the detention order passed by the second respondent
in proceedings BCDFGISSSV No.102/2024 dated 28.11.2024 is hereby set
aside and the habeas corpus petition is allowed. The detenu viz., N.Suresh
Mahapatra, S/o Nanda Mahapatra, aged 54 years, now confined at Central
Prison, Puzhal, Chennai is directed to be set at liberty forthwith, unless his
confinement is required in connection with any other case.
Index : yes/no (S.M.S.,J.) (M.J.R.,J.)
Neutral citation : yes/no 22.01.2025
ss
To
1. The Secretary to Government
Home, Prohibition & Excise Department
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Secretariat, Fort St.George, Chennai 600 009
2. The Commissioner of Police
Office of the Commissioner of Police
Tambaram City, Chennai
3. The Superintendent of Prison
Central Prison, Puzhal, Chennai
4. The Inspector of Police
Prohibition Enforcement Wing
Tambaram
5. The Public Prosecutor
High Court, Madras
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S.M.SUBRAMANIAM,J.
AND
M.JOTHIRAMAN,J.
ss
22.01.2025
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