Plea against detention has to be given immediate attention: SC

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) The Supreme Court has said that ahabeas corpus plea, relating to legality of arrest, detentionor imprisonment of a person, has to be given "immediateattention" and steps should be taken to decide it forthwith. The apex court said this while asking the Lucknow benchof Allahabad High Court to decide within four weeks the pleaby a man, who is the working President of Akhil Bharat HinduMahasabha and has been "detained" for allegedly issuing apress release containing inflammatory language against theProphet. "In our view, a habeas corpus petition has to be givenimmediate attention and steps should be taken to decide itforthwith. We are sure that the High Court shall be alive tothe same and dispose of the habeas corpus writ petition withinfour weeks hence," a bench of justices Dipak Misra and CNagappan said. "When we say that it shall be disposed of within fourweeks, it means that the matter shall be heard and thejudgement shall be delivered within the said period," thebenchsaid. Petitioner Kamlesh Tiwari had approached the apex courtseeking a direction to the authorities concerned to frameappropriate guidelines for expeditious disposal of habeascorpus petitions. He claimed in his plea that he has been illegallydetained under the National Security Act (NSA) by the UttarPradesh Police and had filed a habeas corpus petition beforethe Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court in the matter. He said in his plea that there was an allegation againsthim that on November 30 last year, he had issued a pressrelease on the letter head of Hindu Mahasabha against theProphet due to which there was threat to public order and thestatement was relied upon by the District Magistrate, Lucknow,for invoking provisions of NSA against him. (More) PTI ABA MNLSJK RKSDV