The Madras High Court on Wednesday quashed preventive detention orders passed by the Nilgiris Collector on July 17 against five individuals reportedly involved in the break-in at the Kodanad estate owned by former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa after murdering the security guard on April 24.
Justices Rajiv Shakdher and N. Sathish Kumar quashed the detention orders passed under the Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Cyber Law Offenders, Drug-Offenders Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Forest Offenders, Sand Offenders, Sexual Offenders, Slum Grabbers and Video Pirates Act of 1982.
The orders were quashed on the technical ground of delay in considering the representations made by the detainees: Udayan, Satheesan, Tippu, Jamshed Ali and Manoj. The judges said such such delay would vitiate the entire proceedings since preventive detention leads to curtailing the freedom of individuals without conducting a trial and finding them guilty.