Chennai: Madras High Court on Friday quashed the detention of senior DMK leader and former minister Veerapandi S Arumugam and two others by police under the Goondas Act.
Arumugam, the DMK strongman in Salem, was arrested on June 03 in connection with a case relating to attack on residents of a colony in Salem and detained under the Act on June 18, 2012.
A Division Bench, comprising Justices KN Basha and N Paul Vasanthakumar, in their order, raised seven questions, before allowing the petitions by the detenus.
The bench said while the three have been implicated mostly for alleged offences over land grabbing cases, the Apex Court has held such implication would not amount to an act of causing a breach of public order.
It noted that the Apex court had held that the same would only amount to law and order problem, for which ordinary criminal law action and enforcement would be sufficient.
"In view of the law laid down by the Apex Court as stated supra, it cannot be said that the detenu had acted in a manner prejudicial to the maintenance of public order."
It also sought to know whether it was possible for the detaining authority to go through the voluminous booklet containing material documents and to pass the order within a short time.
The bench concluded that all the grounds raised by the petitioners/detenus are sustainable and all three detention orders are vitiated and were liable to be set aside.
PTI
