Judgment

RAY, J.:- The petitioners in these three writ petitions asked for orders in the nature of habeas corpus.

2. The petitioner Saifuddin alleges that he was arrested by the police on 4 October, 1970 without any order of arrest or detention. He also alleges that he was not given any cause of arrest or detention at the time of his arrest or therefore. He therefore, challenges that his arrest under the Jammu & Kashmir Preventive Detention Act, 1964 (hereinafier referred to as the Act) is illegal.

3. The answer is filed by A. R. Khajuria, Deputy Secretary to the Government of Jammu & Kashmir. It is stated there that the petitioner was detained by the orders of the Secretary to the Government dated 20 June, 1969. He was detained under Section 3 (1) (a) (i) read with Section 5 of the Act. The orders specifically stated that the Government was satisfied that with a view to prevent the petitioner from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the State, it was necessary to detain him. The order was served on the petitioner on 20 June, 1969 by reading over the same and explaining to him in Urdu language. The Government on 28 June, 1969 passed an order pursuant to Section 8 read with Section 13-A of the Act that it was against the public interest to disclose the facts or to communicate to the petitioner the grounds on which his detention order was made. The petitioner was informed of the order.

4. The petitioner thereafter filed a petition bearing No. 307 of 1970 in this Court challenging the detention order. The petition was dismissed by this Court on 3 November, 1970.

5. The answer filed by the Government is that the petitioner was detained under the order dated 20 June, 1969. It is denied that he was detained under any order of detention on 4 October, 1970. The affidavit evidence of the Government is that the petitioner Saifuddin is a Pakistan agent and was deputed for collecting information pertaining to vital defence installations in the State which he has been transmitting to Pakistan intelligence authorities.

6. The provisions contained in Section 8 of the Act specifically empower the Government not to disclose the facts which may be against the public interest. Under Section 13A of the Act the duration of detention may not be longer than six months from the date of detention without obtaining the opinion of any Advisory Board, The present case is covered by the proviso to sub-section (1) of Sec. 13A. The proviso to Section 13A (1) states that where any person is detained with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the State and the grounds on which the detention order has been made are not communicated to him under the proviso to Section 8 (1), such person may be detained for a period of two years from the date of detention without obtaining the opinion of the Advisory Board.

7. Further the detention order of the petitioner Saifuddin was not required under Section 3 of the Act to be approved by the Government because the order of detention was itself made by the Government. It is only when the Divisional Commissioners and the District Magistrates in exercise of powers conferred by sub-seetion (2) of Section 3 make an order that report of the fact is made to the Government together with the grounds on which the order has been made and such other particulars and no such order shall remain in force for more than twelve days unless in the meantime the order is approved by the Government. Therefore in the present case the order being made by the Government under sub-section (1) of Section 3, the approval of the Government was not necessary.

8. The detention of the petitioner Saifuddin is lawful and valid.

9. The petitioner Biro Khan challenges his detention on the ground that he was arrested after his release by the Sessions Judge in the month of May, 1970 having undergone a sentence of six months rigorous imprisonment in a criminal case, and his detention is challenged as illegal.

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