E-Paper
State intelligence department moots extending ban on SIMI
The tribunal, under the Uapa, was constituted by a notification of the ministry of home affairs on February 21 this year after the five-year ban on SIMI ended on January 31.
The state intelligence department in its deposition before the special Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (Uapa) tribunal maintained that the ban on the banned student outfit Student’s Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) must stay, as lifting it would allow the outfit to regroup and restart its anti-national activities.
Nisar Tamboli, deputy commissioner, state intelligence department, submitted his deposition before the Uapa judge Mukta Gupta at Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) on Saturday morning. Delhi High Court judge Mukta Gupta is currently holding pan India public hearings to decide on the confirmation of Union home ministry (MHA) public notification which proposes a ban on SIMI for the next five years.
Nobody from the public or SIMI organisation appeared before the tribunal. Founded in 1977, SIMI was banned in 2001. The tribunal, under the Uapa, was constituted by a notification of the ministry of home affairs on February 21 this year after the five-year ban on SIMI ended on January 31.
The tribunal took on record the affidavit filed by Tamboli and heard his deposition. Tamboli said, “The police have seized pocket diaries and other incriminating material like subversive literature instigating the youth in the name of Jihad and cross-border terrorism which are anti-national activities. The police have seized various computer files, documents and literature which was anti-national.”
Judge Gupta in her observations said that information related to various cases related to SIMI must be filtered. “Don’t file unnecessary affidavits,” she said. The tribunal on Friday had made it clear that it was looking for specific details beyond the affidavits which had already been submitted. Tamboli added, “The incriminating material was aimed at inciting violence and hatred against the country. It was seized from different SIMI activists who were arrested by the Maharashtra police for their anti-national activities. There were eight such cases related to SIMI which were lodged at Malegaon, Nagpur, Akola, Solapur, Kalyan and Bhiwandi police stations.” Tribunal member and additional solicitor general Pinky Anand who cross examined Tamboli, said, “The nodal officers of the state anti-terrorism squad (ATS), state intelligence department (SID), special branch (SB) deposed before the tribunal seeking a ban on SIMI in view of its threat to national security. Trial is pending in the eight cases (Pre-2014 ) mentioned by the state intelligence department wherein incriminating material has been confiscated from the accused.
“There is only one case involving SIMI post 2014 which is the Faraskhana blasts case ,” she said. Anand said that the tribunal will be meet in Hyderabad (Telangana) for next hearing and thereafter, it will again come back to Maharashtra, where the hearing will take place at Aurangabad. The tribunal is covering Maharashtra from Pune and Aurangabad regions respectively. The next hearing is scheduled in Aurangabad for May 16-18.
