NIRMAL KUMAR KHANDELWAL vs UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

The Supreme Court held that the detention of the petitioner under Section 3(1) of COFEPOSA was unlawful as the appropriate Government failed to confirm the detention within three months as mandated by Article 22(4) of the Constitution. The Court emphasized that the lack of confirmation within the stipulated period rendered the detention unauthorized and illegal. The judgment reiterated that the discretion to confirm detention does not allow for continued detention beyond three months without such confirmation, thus allowing the petition for habeas corpus.