NIRANJAN SINGH vs STATE OF MADHYA-PRADESH

The Supreme Court ruled that under Article 22(5) of the Constitution, the State Government must consider a detenu's representation expeditiously; failure to do so results in illegal detention. The Court rejected the plea of res judicata against a subsequent writ petition under Article 32 after an earlier petition under Article 226 was dismissed. The Court found inordinate delay in the State's response to the detenu's representation, leading to the conclusion that the detention was unlawful.