The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court has struck down a detention order passed against a 20-year-old man in Jalgaon district, terming it an illegal and “colourable exercise of power.” The court not only quashed the order but also directed the Maharashtra government to pay the youth, Dikshant Sapkale, Rs 2 lakh as compensation, recoverable from the salary of the magistrate who had issued the order.
A division bench of Justices Vibha Kankanwadi and Hiten Venegavkar, in its October 1 order (made available on Sunday), observed that the detention order resulted in the illegal confinement of the petitioner, thereby violating his fundamental right to life and personal liberty.
The bench sharply criticised the authorities, stating:
“The entire course of action demonstrates an arbitrary exercise of executive power. The detaining authority has been absolutely insensitive and careless while initiating the proceedings.”
According to Sapkale’s plea, the detention order was passed in July 2024 but was never served on him while he was already in judicial custody in connection with another case. It was handed over only in May 2025 when he secured bail. As soon as he was released, he was rearrested based on the same order.
The High Court ruled that keeping the detention order in “cold storage” and serving it only upon his release was a misuse of preventive detention powers. No explanation was provided for the deliberate delay, the bench noted.
The court stressed that preventive detention is an extraordinary measure meant only for situations involving a genuine threat to public order. In this case, the detention was based merely on two pending criminal cases, which the court held was insufficient to justify such a drastic step.
Calling the move an “abuse of preventive detention law,” the bench said heavy compensation was necessary as a deterrent:
“This is a fit case to impose exemplary costs on the detaining authority, as the petitioner has suffered illegal and unconstitutional detention.”
The court also found that the supporting documents for the detention were supplied in English, a language not understood by Sapkale, instead of Marathi. This, it held, was another incurable defect in the proceedings.
Declaring the detention order invalid, the High Court directed the Maharashtra government to pay Sapkale Rs 2 lakh in compensation, with the amount to be recovered from the magistrate’s salary.
