The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Court dismisses Maoist leader's plea

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Friday, Sep 29, 2006
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Court dismisses Maoist leader's plea

Special Correspondent

Says it did not see any merit to issue a writ of mandamus as prayed for

Chandra Prakash Gajurel

CHENNAI : The Madras High Court has dismissed a writ petition by Nepalese Maoist leader R. Chandra Prakash Gajurel seeking a writ of mandamus forbearing the respondents — Union Government, Tamil Nadu State and the Inspector of Police, Airport Police Station, Meenambakkam, from deporting him without following the procedure under the Extradition Act.

A Division Bench, comprising Justice P.D. Dinakaran and Justice M. Thanikachalam, also treated as closed a habeas corpus petition (HCP) praying for the production of Mr. Gajurel before the court.

The Bench said in view of the specific stand by the Union Government that there was no request for extradition under section 4 of the Extradition Act and the criminal case tried by the Judicial Magistrate, Alandur, had ended in conviction and the sentence thereunder was also undergone, it did not see any merit to issue a writ of mandamus as prayed for.

Therefore the writ petition was being dismissed as devoid of merits and for want of legal contentions. But, the Bench observed, if and when any request was made for extradition, it went without saying that the Union Government should adhere to the procedure under the Extradition Act and pass appropriate orders. As regards the HCP, the Judges said it was a settled law that when a warrant was pending against a person, it may not be proper for the court to entertain a writ of habeas corpus.

Mr. Gajurel was arrested on September 18 by the Inspector, Bakthinagar police station, West Bengal, under a warrant issued by the Chief Judicial Magistrate , Jalpaiguri and produced before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Chennai, who had detained him by a valid judicial order. If the petitioner had any grievance as to the correctness of the arrest for non-compliance of the directions of the Supreme Court in D.K.Basu's case, he was at liberty to move the jurisdictional court to seek necessary relief.

However, the Bench said as a serious apprehension of danger to the life of Mr.Gajurel was projected before it, in the interest of justice and in order to uphold his personal liberty, it directed the Tamil Nadu Government to depute a police officer not below the rank of a Deputy Superintendent to accompany the detenu till he was produced before the CJM, Jalpaiguri, if the request of the Inspector, Bakthinagar police, for issue of a transit warrant was granted.

The Bench said it was convinced that it may not be proper for it either to issue a writ as prayed for in HCP or to recall the warrant issued by the competent court, which could be done only by a competent jurisdictional court. Without expressing any opinion in the matter, it gave liberty to the petitioner to make such request before the court which had jurisdiction over Bakthinagar police station.

The Judges rejected the contention that the Inspector, Bakthinagar police station, ought not to have arrested Mr.Gajurel when an order passed by the High Court staying the P.T. warrant was in force, as it was brought to the Bench's notice by the Additional Public Prosecutor that the Maoist leader was arrested not pursuant to a P.T. warrant , but based on the warrant by the competent jurisdictional court in some other case.

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