In Madras the legislature was in session and all of a sudden, one evening, a notification was issued that the legislature was prorogued. For what reason it was done, nobody knew, and the next morning an ordinance was issued. To what effect? Apart from so many other things, there was the Public Safety Act and under that Act many people were arrested and detained in jail, without even being told what they are arrested for and why they are detained. Well, they were forced to resort to such remedies as were available under the existing law and applications were pending in the High Court for issue of writs of Habeas Corpus and the High Court issued in deserving cases writs of Habeas Corpus. The moment a person was released by the order of the High Court, that very moment he was re-arrested and put in jail again. And not satisfied with all these apparently, the Government felt annoyed by the independent way in which the High Court was exercising the legal powers conferred on it under Section 491 of the Criminal Procedure Code. What happened was that one evening the Legislature was prorogued and the next morning an ordinance was issued, even taking away the power of the High Court to issue writs under section 491 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Now, Sir, is there any bona fides in this? Can any reasonable man say that this could be done with any bona fides? This is the most scandalous way in which the powers conferred on the Government were being exercised. Under the cover of the powers conferred on them, they have acted in the most irresponsible way. Therefore, it is that I say, Sir, that the powers of courts should not be made to depend upon the will and pleasure of the Government and they should under no circumstances be allowed to interfere with the powers that vest in courts of law. If the very guarantee of personal liberty on which democratic form of Government is based and the powers vested in courts of law to enforce such rights independently are allowed to be interfered with, no one is safe. Of course, if is not a question of majority community; it is not a question of minority community but the powers that be at the time clap in jail such of the individuals or groups of people, whom they do not like and whom they do not want to be at liberty, perhaps for the fear that they may undermine the power which they are enjoying. It is one thing to make safeguards on occasions when there is general disturbance of the peace of the country, but it is quite another thing to give full powers to the Governments to do anything they like under the guise of these ’emergency powers’ and empower them to take away powers vested in Courts of Law to protect the personal liberty of citizens.
