law: Prevention of Black Marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential Commodities Act, 1980
  3. Power to make orders detaining certain persons
  (1) The Central Government or State Government or any officer of
  
  the Central Government, not below the rank or a Joint Secretary to that
  
  government specially empowered for the purposes of this section by that
  
  government, or any officer of a State Government, not below the rank of a
  
  Secretary to that government specially empowered for the purposes of this
  
  section by that government, may, if satisfied, with respect to any person that
  
  with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the
  
  maintenance of supplies of the commodities essential to the community it is
  
  necessary so to do, make an order directing that such person be detained.
  Explanation:  For the purposes of this sub-section, the
  
  expression "acting in any manner prejudicial to the maintenance of
  
  supplies of commodities essential to the community" means-
  (a) committing or instigating any person to commit any offence
  
  punishable under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 (10 of 1955) or under any
  
  other law for the time being in force relating to the control of the
  
  production, supply or distribution of, or trade and commerce in, any commodity
  
  essential to the community; or
  (b) dealing in any commodity-
  ( i ) which is an
  
  essential commodity as defined in the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 (10 of
  
  1955); or
  (ii) with respect to which provisions have
  
  been made in any such other law as is referred to in clause (a), with a view to
  
  making gain in any manner which may directly or indirectly defeat or tend to
  
  defeat the provisions of that Act or other law aforesaid.
  (2) Any of the following officers, namely-
  (a) District Magistrates;
  (b) Commissioners of Police, wherever they
  
  have been appointed, 
  
  may also, if satisfied as provided in sub-section (1), exercise the powers conferred
  
  by the said sub-section.
  (3) When any order is made under this section by an officer
  
  mentioned in sub-section (2), he shall forthwith report the fact to the State
  
  Government to which he is subordinate together with the grounds on which the
  
  order has been made and such other particulars as in his opinion have a bearing
  
  on the matter, and no such order shall remain in force for more than twelve
  
  days after the making thereof unless in the meantime it has been approved by
  
  the State Government:
  PROVIDED that where under section 8 the grounds of
  
  detention are communicated by the authority making the order after five days
  
  but not later than ten days from the date of detention, this sub-section shall
  
  apply subject to the modification that for the words "twelve days",
  
  the words "fifteen days" shall be substituted.
  (4) When any order is made or approved by the State Government
  
  under this section or when any order is made under this section by an officer
  
  of the State Government not below the rank of Secretary to that Government
  
  specially empowered under sub-section (1), the State Government shall, within
  
  seven days, report the fact to the Central Government together with the grounds
  
  on which the order has been made and such other particulars as, in the opinion
  
  of the State Government, have a bearing on the necessity for the order.