Document Fragment View

Matching Fragments

M. K. Nambiar (S. K. Aiyar and V.G. Rao, with him) for the petitioner.
K. Rajah Aiyar, Advocate-General of Madras (C. R. Pattabi Raman and R. Ganapathi, with him) lot the State of Madras.
M.C. Setalvad, Attorney-General for India (Jindralal, with him) for the Union of India.
95
1950. May 19. The following Judgments were delivered. KANIA C. J--This is a petition by the applicant under article 32 (1) of the Constitution of India for a writ of habeas corpus against his detention in the Madras Jail. In the petition he has given various dates showing how he has been under detention since December, 1947. Under the ordi- nary Criminal Law he was sentenced to terms of imprisonment but those convictions were set aside. While he was tires under detention under one of the orders of the Madras State Government, on the 1st of March, 1950, he was served with an order made under section 3 (1) of the Preventive Detention Act, IV of 1950. He challenges the legality of the order as it is contended that Act IV of 1950 contravenes the provisions of articles 13, 19 and 21 and the provisions of that Act are not in accordance with article 22 of the Con- stitution. He has also challenged the validity of the order on the ground that it is issued mala fide. The burden of proving that allegation is on the applicant. Because of the penal provisions of section 14 of the impugned Act the applicant has not disclosed the grounds, supplied to him, for his detention and the question of mala fides of the order therefore cannot be gone into under this petition. The question of the validity of Act IV of 1950 was argued before us at great length. This is the first case in which the different articles of the Constitution of India contained in the Chapter on Fundamental Rights has come for discussion before us. The Court is indebted to the learned counsel for the applicant and the Attorney-General for their assistance in interpreting the true meaning of the relevant clauses of the Constitution.