JUDGMENT

P. N. BHAGWATI, J. :- This writ petition has again come up before us for further directions. Mr. U.P. Singh, learned Advocate on behalf of the State of Bihar, has intimated to us that pursuant to the directions given by us in our order dated 9th March, 1979,* the State of Bihar has already released 70 under-trial prisoners whose names were set out in the chart filed by Mrs. Hingorani on 9th March, 1979. It is highly regrettable that those under-trial prisoners should have remained in jail without trial for periods longer than the maximum term for which they could have been sentenced if convicted. We fail to see what moral or ethical justification could the State have to detain these unfortunate persons for such unreasonably long periods of time without trial. We feel a sense of relief that they should once again be able to breathe the air of freedom. But we find that there are still many more undertrail prisoners who fall within this category of persons who have been in detention for periods longer than the maximum term without their trial having been commenced. Mrs. Hingorani has filed before me at the hearing of the writ petition on 16th April, 1979 a second chart giving