Bhagwati, J. - (1.) This Writ Petition can be disposed of on a very short ground. It challenges an order of detention made by the Administrator, Delhi Administration on May 21, 1979, under Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974. The order 4 of detention was served on the detenu on May 24, 1979, and the grounds of detention were also served along with the order of detention. The detenu made a representation against the order of detention on July 2, 1979 and the representation was received by the Administrator on July 7, 1979. Since the Advisory Board was meeting on July 9, 1979, the Administrator forwarded the representation of the detenu to the Advisory Board on the same day on which 4 it was received by him. The Advisory Board at its meeting on July 9, 1979, considered the case of the detenu and reached the opinion that the detention of the detenu was justified. The report of the Advisory Board was forwarded on July 11, 1979, and the Administrator thereafter confirmed the order of detention on July 17, 1979. It appears that the representation of the detenu was not considered by the Administrator before confirming the order of detention and it was only on August 2, 1979 that an order was made by the Administrator rejecting the representation. It is now well settled as a result of the decision of this Court in Vimal Chand Jawantraj Jain v. Pradhan & Ors., AIR 1979 SC 1501 , that the representation made by the detenu must be considered by the detaining authority before confirming the order of detention and consideration by the Advisory Board is no substitute for this mandatory requirement. Nor can the subsequent consideration and rejection of the representation by the detaining authority cure the invalidity of order of confirmation. The detention of the detenu in the present case must, therefore, be held to be illegal and void.
(2.) We accordingly allow the Writ Petition, quash the order of detention of the detenu and direct that he be set at liberty forthwith.;