JUDGEMENT
S. Radhakrishnan, J. -
(1.)By this petition, the petitioner who is the mother
of the detenu is challenging an order of detention dated
24th May, 1999 passed by the Joint Secretary of
Government of India under Sec.3(1) of the Conservation
of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling
Activities Act, 1974, (hereinafter stated as the "said
Act" for brevity sake), with a view to prevent the
detenu Iqbal in future from acting in any manner
prejudicial to the conservation of foreign exchange.
The order of detention was passed and the detenu was
directed to be kept in the Central Prison, at Mumbai.
Alongwith the said order detailed grounds were furnished
to the detenu Iqbal.
(2.)The learned Counsel Mr.Maqsood Khan, appearing on
behalf of the detenu challenges the above detention
order only on two grounds. Firstly, that the order was
not justified from the materials placed before the
detaining authority as the material do not disclose the
activities to be prejudicial to the conservation of
foreign exchange as the exact quantity of foreign
currency purchased by the detenu from Riyaz Kashmiri has
not been quantified. In view thereof, it was submitted
that there is non application of mind. Secondly, the
learned Counsel Mr.Maqsood Khan appearing on behalf of
the detenu has contended that there is a gross delay in
passing the detention order inasmuch as more than 10
months had lapsed from the time of disclosure of the
detenu s name on 15th May, 1998 and also that the said
detention order was not executed for over seven and half
years, and even at the time of execution on 11th
September, 2006 the detaining authority ought to have
considered whether the detention was really needed or
not.
(3.)The brief facts are that the Respondents found that
one Riyaz Ahmed Kashmiri and Javed Ahmed Kashmiri were
indulging in large scale illegal sale of foreign
currency in an organised manner especially to enable
passengers illegally carrying the said foreign currency
abroad. The modus operendi appears to be that the said
Riyaz Ahmend Kashmiri and Javed Ahmed Kashmiri alongwith
Iqbal, the detenu herein, used to obtain various
passports of different persons for the purpose of
securing employment abroad and keep photocopies of the
relevant pages and thereafter affixing the seal of M/
s
Empire Exchange Bureau filling in the amount of foreign
exchange, and attaching BTQ application form, the form
used to be forged as if it was signed by the persons
indicated in the passport. It appears that the detenu
also used to sign those BTQ applications i.e.forged
applications and deposit the cash amount and obtain pay
order in favour of other FFMCs and used to sign cheques
for obtaining pay orders, and the foreign exchange so
obtained will be sold at a premium to passengers who
were going abroad. The aforesaid passengers who were
actually carrying the said foreign exchange were totally
different from the name under which the foreign exchange
was obtained. It appears that the said Riyaz Ahmed
Kashmiri and Javed Ahmed Kashmiri had purchased over two
lakhs US Dollars in the year 1997 itself and the overall
amount appeared around 41,55,611 US Dollars, and 23,000
Pounds Sterlings were also purchsed in this manner and
sold at a premium. The grounds of detention served on
the detenu sets out in detail all the aforesaid facts
and the exact involvement of the detenu, and ultimately
the authority after satisfying itself the necessity to
prevent the detenu from indulging in such activity and
to conserve foreign exchange, the aforesaid detention
order was passed, which is impugned in this Petition.
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