JUDGMENT

Dipak Misra, J.

In this writ petition, preferred under Article 32 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner, an employee of Indian Air Force, who has been found guilty of the offence under Section 39(a) of The Air Force Act, 1950 (for brevity “the Act”) and has been awarded sentence to suffer rigorous imprisonment for three months along with other punishments by order dated 15.3.2013 which has been affirmed by the Competent Authority under Section 161(1) of the said enactment, has prayed for issue of a writ of habeas corpus directing the respondents to release him as he is in illegal detention because he had already spent one and half months in custody before the conviction was recorded by the court-martial.

2. The factual score, as depicted, is that the petitioner was appointed as a Mechanical Transport Driver in the Indian Air Force on 16.12.2002. As he absented himself without leave from 9.10.2012 to 1.2.2013, a court-martial proceeding was initiated against him and, eventually, by order dated 15.3.2013, he was found guilty and was imposed the sentence of rigorous imprisonment for three months apart from dismissal from service and reduction of rank. It is put forth