ORDER

Sreedharan, J.--1. The present writ petition has been filed by the petitioner, aggrieved by the order of detention passed by the District Magistrate, Katni (the Respondent No. 2 herein) dated 2.1.2020, whereby the petitioner has been detained in exercise of power under section 3(2) of the National Security Act, 1980 (hereinafter referred to as the "NSA") for an alleged offence committed by him under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

2. The brief facts of the case are as follows:

On 27.5.205, the Food Inspector, Ms. Deoki Sonwani of the Food and Drug Administration, Jabalpur, holding additional charge in Katni, conducted a surprise inspection of the Petitioner's Dhaba and samples of loose chilli powder and Thums UP (carbonated beverage) was taken. The report of the Public Analyst disclosed that the sample of chilli powder was found to be misbranded and a complaint case was registered by the Food Department against the Petitioner, in the Court of the JMFC Katni, being Case No. 4433/2013, which was still pending on the date of filing the petition under judgment.

3. The Causa Causans for the action under the NSA against the Petitioner is a surprise inspection conducted by the Food Safety Officer at the Dhaba of the petitioner on 7.8.2019, in which sample of 'Magaj Ke Laddu' were taken and the sample, upon being tested by the Food Analyst at the State Food Testing Laboratory, found it unsafe. The copy of the report of the Food Analyst is annexed with the petition at page 85 as Annexure P-3. The report is dated 18.10.2019. The sample is branded as unsafe for human consumption under section 3(1)(22)(v) of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, due to the presence Metanil Yellow, a non-permitted colour.

4. It is the case of the petitioner that in both the instances (the case in 2005 and 2019), he was not the manufacturer of the food substance. In both the cases he had had purchased it from a third party and had kept it at his Dhaba for sale. However, the Chief Medical and Health Authority and Designated Officer under the Food Safety Administration, District Katni, respondent No. 5 herein, wrote a letter dated 30.12.2019 to the Superintendent of Police, Katni, the respondent No. 3 herein and recommended stern action against the petitioner as a deterrent. Likewise, the Station House Officer of P.S. Madhav Nagar, District Katni, the respondent No. 4 herein also addressed a letter dated 30.12.2019 to the respondent No. 3 recommending the detention of the petitioner under section 3(2) of the NSA in view of the two cases of food adulteration against the petitioner.

5. Based on the aforementioned letter of the respondent No. 5 and respondent No. 4, addressed to the respondent No. 3, the respondent No. 3 addressed a letter dated 31.12.2019 to the District Magistrate, Katni, the respondent No. 2 herein, who issued the impugned order dated 2.1.2020, on the basis of which the petitioner has been detained under the NSA.

6. The grounds of detention dated 2.1.2020, takes into account the earlier case against the petitioner in 2005 under the erstwhile Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 for keeping misbranded chilli powder in which the case is still pending against the petitioner before the trial Court. The grounds of detention disclose the mind of the respondent No. 2 who feels that it is necessary to hold the petitioner in detention on account of his continuous activity of preparing and selling adulterated food. This opinion of the District Magistrate has been based upon a case pending against the petitioner which had taken place fourteen years before the present case, which prompted the initiation of the NSA proceedings against the petitioner. How that instance of 2005 and thereafter the act of adulteration in 2019, could make the District Magistrate arrive at the 'subjective opinion' that the petitioner has continuously been engaging in acts of adulteration from 2005 to 2019 is not clear in the absence of any similar off