' Said Mohammad alias Saida was arrested in a case under section 61, Act I of 1914 (Excise Act), on 26-7-1977. During the investigation of the said case, an order of detention was passed against the detenu, on 1.8-1977, under the Martial Law Order No,
9. This order was passed by the Martial Law Administrator, Punjab, Zone 'A'. The detenu was ordered to be detained for a period of three months. The material against the detenu was that he was involved in several cases. Subsequently, on 28-10.1977, another order of detention had been passed by the Martial Law Administrator, Punjab, Zone 'A' under Martial Law Order No,
9. The detenu was ordered to be detained for another period of six months.
2. The learned counsel for the detenu contends that the detenu had been acquitted in all the cases except the one case referred to above. Most of the other cases were of year 1970. A policy had been framed by the Martial Law flu authorities that if no case is registered against a person within a period o , five years, no order of detention would be passed. Except the case under' Excise Act, most of the cases were of year 1970. One case is of year 1972 in all the cases the detenu had been acquitted. A person cannot be detain for an indefinite period. Under these circumstances, [ hold that there wa no justification for passing an order of detention for such a long period. The petition in accepted. The order of detention is set aside. The detenu shall be set free forthwith unless wanted in some other case.