The main legal point established in the judgment is the importance of timely and effective preventive action in externment proceedings, as well as the conditions that must be satisfied for an order of externment to be valid.

ORDER :

Shailendra Shukla, J.

1. Submissions were made on I.A. No. 1766/2021, which is an application for amendment in prayer clause.

2. As per the application, the date of the impugned order was wrongly mentioned as 27.8.2018 whereas, it was 4.2.2021.

3. The application for amendment stands allowed in view of the fact that the date mentioned earlier in prayer clause was written erroneously.

4. Let the amendment be carried out during the course of the day.

5. Accordingly, I.A. No. 1766/2021 stands allowed and disposed of.

6. Final submissions were heard. The same is being disposed of as under:-

1. The present Writ Appeal under Section 2(1) of Madhya Pradesh Uchcha Nyayalaya (Khand Nyayapeeth Ko Appeal) Adhiniyam, 2005, has been preferred against order dated 4.2.2021, passed in W.P. No. 20518/2020, refusing to set aside the order dated 17.9.2020, passed by the District Collector, District Shajapur and order dated 14.12.2020, passed by the Commissioner, Division Ujjain, regarding externment of the petitioner for a period of six months from 17.9.2020.

2. The facts of the case precisely speaking are that, the Superintendent of Police, Ujjain requested the District Magistrate to initiate externment proceedings against the petitioner for being involved in criminal activities and the grounds of externment were served on 29.11.2017, as the petitioner was obstructing Government employees to execute Government work and thereby creating panic and terror resultant to which no witness was coming forward to depose against him. Hence, it was requested that the petitioner be externed under Section 5(a)(b) of Madhya Pradesh Rajya Suraksha Adhiniyam, 1990 (herein after referred as 'the Act of 1990'). The District Magistrate, Ujjain, issued show cause notice against the petitioner under Section 8 of the Act of 1990. The petitioner submitted his reply along with affidavits in support refuting allegations of being involved in criminal activities and submitting that he was involved in the social service during lock down period. However, the submission of the petitioner did not find support from District Magistrate and externment order was passed for a period of six months vide order dated 17.9.2020. The appeal against this order also stood dismissed on 14.12.2020.

3. In the impugned order passed in writ petition which was preferred by the petitioner, it was observed that in view of the fact that petitioner is consistently involved himself in the criminal activities, his acquittal in some of the cases would not be enough to set aside the orders of externment and petition was dismissed.

4. The petitioner in this writ appeal has submitted that the order of externment was passed due to political rivalry of the appellant, that order of externment has been passed after a period of 20 months of service of grounds of externment, that appellant has been acquitted in all 4 criminal cases registered against him and rest cases are in the form of complaints of trivial criminal nature, that appellant has been a Corona warrior and these were appropriate grounds for setting aside the externment order and on these grounds impugned order passed in the writ petition has been sought to be set aside.

5. Learned counsel for the State was heard who has supported the impugned orders submitting that the order was passed keeping in view the criminal antecedents of the appellant and resultant terror created in the mind of the public at large and any relief to a person such as the appellant would create sense of insecurity in public at large.

6. Considered.

7. Learned counsel for the appellant has laid stress on the fact that there is an inordinate time gap between the date when the grounds of externment were served upon the appellant and when the order of externment was passed upon the appellant. The earlier date is 29.11.2017 and the later date is 17.9.2020. Learned counsel has ref