The court emphasized the importance of preventive detention and the need to protect the economy from the activities of economic offenders. The court highlighted the procedural safeguards under Art.22 of the Constitution and the need for the Detaining Authority to review the matter in light of changed circumstances.

1. In O.P. No. 1755 of 1982 the petitioner prays to call for the records relating to the proceedings of the 2nd respondent, the State of Kerala, leading to the order of detention against the petitioner and to issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ or order or direction quashing the order of detention dated 18tb April. 1980 passed against the petitioner by respondents 1 and 2 and prohibit them from executing the said order. It is alleged in the original petition that the 1st respondent had issued the detention order dated 18th April, 1980 against the petitioner as well as against Yogesh Shantilal Choksi who is the respondent in Writ Appeal 305 of 1982 under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (hereinafter referred to as 'the COFEPOSA Act') arising out of one and the same incident, and that the aforesaid Yogesh Shantilal Choksi filed O.P. No. 5552 of 1981 and this Court was pleased to quash and set aside the order of detention passed against the said Choksi as illegal. The above writ appeal has been fried by the State of Kerala, represented by the Chief Secretary, and Special Secretary, Home Department, Secretariat, Trivandrum who are the respondents in the O. P. 5552 of 1981 challenging the order passed by a learned single judge of this Court quashing and setting aside the order of detention passed against Choksi who is the petitioner in O.P. No. 5552 of 1981. Since the writ appeal arises out of the same incident and the points raised in both the O. P. and the writ appeal are the same, both are disposed of by a common judgment.

2. The facts leading to the issue of the order of detention impugned in these cases may be stated in brief as follows:

On 2nd November 1979 when the petitioners were proceeding to Trivandrum along with one Razak and one Mohamed Husain in a taxi car, they were stopped by the Customs Officials at Aroor; and on a search they found in the car. 186 kilograms of silver ornaments and articles. The car along with the silver ornaments as well as the occupants including the petitioners were taken to the Customs House at Ernakulam and the ornaments were seized under a Panchanama. The petitioners and others were questioned and the Customs Officers took confessional statements from all of therm to the effect that the said ornaments were meant for export to Dubai from Trivandrum Air Port. The statement of the petitioner in O. P. 1755 of 1982 was to the effect that the ornaments in the car were taken to Trivandrum for export to Dubai under the guise of personal baggage of passengers going to Dubai. The petitioners and other occupants of the car were produced before the Judicial Magistrate for Economic Offences on 8th November, 1979 and were later ordered to be released on bail. After his release on bail the petitioner informed the Collector of Customs, Cochin that his statement was taken under threat and coercion.

3. The Collector of Central Excise thereafter served a show cause notice dated 7th April, 1980 on the petitioner and eight others directing them to show cause why action should not be taken against them under the provisions of the Customs Act in respect of the seizure of the said silver ornaments. The allegations in brief as set out in the show cause notice were to the effect that the petitioners in the writ petitions and others were carrying the said articles in an attempt to export without obtaining the necessary Government approval and that consequently the said silver items were liable to confiscation and that the petitioners were liable to be penalised for the violation of the provisions of the Customs Act. The petitioners sent replies denying the allegations. In the said replies the petitioners reiterated their statements that the confession statements were obtained by coercion and under duress. It was also stated therein that since the silver items in question were found at a place about 110 miles away from Trivandrum Air Port, by no stretc