Judgment

SIKRI, J. : This is a joint petition by two detenus under Art. 32 of the Constitution praying for the issue of a writ of habeas corpus or other appropriate writ, direction or order directing that the petitioners be released.

2. The petitioner, Arshad Ahmad, was detained in pursuance of Detention Order, dated September 19, 1967, passed under Section 3 (1) (a) (I) of the Jammu and Kashmir Preventive Detention Act, 1964. The copy of the order on the record shows that the order was served on the detenu by Jaswant Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police (C.I.D.), Jammu and September 27, 1967.

3. No grounds of detention were served on the detenu, but an order dated October 25, 1967, issued by the Secretary to the Government , Home Department, was served on him informing him that it would be against the public interest to disclose the facts or the grounds of detention to him.

4. The learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. Garg, contends that the order dated October 25, 1967, was served too late and the detention of the petitioner became illegal when the time for serving the grounds of detention had expired.

5. Section 8 of the Jammu and Kashmir Preventive Detention Act, 1964, provides