TMI Blog1974 (2) TMI 95X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ce of supplies or of services essential to the life of the community and such a mindless order suffered from a fatal genetic disease diagnosed by this Court in many decisions as fatal, runs the submission. 3. Now, the admitted facts and the authoritative law and their interaction. It is best to begin with the impugned order itself which reads: No. 1182/C dated, the 9th October, 1973. Whereas I am satisfied that with a view to preventing Shri Jagdish Prasad, Proprietor M/s. Lachmi Bhandar, North Market Road, Upper Bazar, Ranchi, from acting in any manner prejudicial to the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community, it is necessary to make an order that he be detained. Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Sub-section (2) of the Section 3 of the Maintenance of Internal Security Act, 1971 (No. 26-of 1971), I hereby direct that the said Shri Jagdish Prasad be detained. He shall be treated in detention in Ranchi Jail and classified as Class Y and in division IB. (S. N. Sinha) District Magistrate, Ranchi. The executive interdict on the trader's freedom is issued to inhibit his acting in any manner prejudicial to the mainten ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... g. May be, counsel is right in his contention that all supplies are not Services and all services are not supplies but the complex needs and amenities of modern life and the multifarious obligations of a welfare state mingle supplies and services so much that the concentric circle geometry becomes a misleading stroke of conceptualism in this jural area. For example, an essential commodity is at once a supply and a service: Section 36(3) of the Defence of India Rules, 1971 defines it to mean: essential commodity means food, water, fuel, light, power or any other thing essential for the existence of the community which is notified in this behalf by Government; Light and power thus are commodities; so also food and water. Yet who will deny that light is a service or drinking water, for that matter ? The touchstone of social control is that it must be a thing essential for the existence of the community; when crystallised it is supplies, when sublimated it is services. It depends in most cases on the angle from which you view and the lens you use. Food is supplies, so is shipping and wagons, kerosine and gasoline. And yet they are services. At a feeding center for starving chi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... obscure. 6. Had the authority used one or other of the grounds in the alternative, such for example as 'public order' or 'security of State' or 'maintenance of supplies', it would have failed in law. he has to be firm and clear and not doubtful about why he is detaining the man. 'Either ' or' ill fits into Section 3. Not so, when it is cumulative. A man may be detained on grounds A and B but not A or B. Here, the cumulative, not the alternative is the tenor of the order. Had it been otherwise due care would stand negatived and the order would fail. Fundamental rights are fundamental and administrative indifference is impermissible to encroach beyond the strict lines of the law. Rameshwar Lal [1968]2SCR505 elicited some stern observations from Hidayatullah, J., as he then was. The learned Judge said: However, the detention of a person without a trial, merely on the subjective satisfaction of an authority however high, is a serious matter. It must require the closest scrutiny of the material on which the decision is formed, leaving no room for errors or at least avoidable errOrs. The very reason that the courts do not consider the reasonable ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... aya for earning undue profit, is a conclusion reached from the fact of seizure of paddy and rice on 25-7-1973 or the seizure of rice on 16-5-1972 from their unauthorized possession at Messrs. Srinivas Basudco, Fancy Bazar, Gauhati. These are not only cases where one of the grounds of detention was vague, but also cases where the detaining authority did not apply its mind at all to one of the grounds of detention. If the detaining authority had no particulars before it as regards the smuggling operation how was it possible for it to have been satisfied that the petitioners were smuggling rice to Meghalaya for earning undue profit? If there was any particular instance of smuggling of the kind in the mind of the detaining authority, it would have been possible for it to specify the particular instance at least in the grounds. 10. Reference was also made in the above case by the learned Judge to Keshav Talpade v. Emperor A.I.R. 1943 F.C.R.1,8 where it was said: If a detaining authority gave four reasons for detaining a man, without distinguishing between them, and any two or three of the reasons are held to be bad, it can never be certain to what extent the bad reasons operate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nce of M/s. Pramod Flour Mill, Khelari is 9/72 and not 31/69. It has also been established that M/s. Pramod Flour Mill, Khelari had no license in 1969. It has also been established that on 2-10-73 M/s. Flour Mill Khelari did not make any purchase of rice from you or from any other shop. 5. That similarly in support of your assertion as stated in para No. 2 above, you produced cash memo No. 1137 dated 2-16-73 showing sale of 10 bags of rice to Shri Kundan Lal of Khelari showing his licence number as 26/67 (R). On actual verification at Khelari by a Magistrate 1st Class, Ranchi, from Shri Kundan Lal of Khelari it has been established that Shri Kundan Lal of Khelari has got no foodgrain dealer's licence, nor he deals in foodgrains. It has also been established that the said Kundan Lal of Khelari did not purchase any rice from you on 2-10-73. In the circumstances I am satisfied that if he is allowed to remain at large, he will indulge in activities prejudicial to the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community for prevention of such activities I consider his detention necessary. . . . 13. He who runs and reads will be satisfied, if the statements are tr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dure. Observance of procedure has been the bastion against wanton assaults on personal liberty over the years. Under our Constitution, the only guarantee of personal liberty for a person is that he shall not be deprived of it except in accordance with the procedure established by law. The need today for maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community cannot be over-emphasised. There will be no social security without maintenance of adequate supplies and services essential to the community. But social security is not the only goal of good society. There are other values in a society. Our country is taking singular pride in the democratic ideals in personal liberty. It would indeed be ironic if, in the name of social security, we would sanction the subversion of this liberty. We do not pause to consider whether social security is more precious than personal liberty in the scale of values. For, any judgment as regards that would be but a value judgment on which opinions might differ. But whatever be its impact on the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community, when a certain procedure is prescribed by the Constitution or the Laws for depriving a ci ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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