New Delhi: The Centre has set up a tribunal, headed by Justice Chander Shekhar of the Delhi High Court, to adjudicate if there exists sufficient cause to ban the Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir (JeI) and the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front-Yasin Malik (JKLF-Y) faction. The decision has been taken by the Home Ministry exercising the powers conferred under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, an official notification said. The JeI and the JKLF-Y were declared as unlawful associations on February 28 and March 22 respectively.
“Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by the sub-section (1) of section 5 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (37 of 1967), the Central Government hereby constitutes an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal consisting of Mr. Justice Chander Shekhar, High Court of Delhi, for the purpose of adjudicating whether or not there is sufficient cause of declaring the Jamaat-e-Islami-Jammu and Kashmir and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front-Yasin Malik faction, as unlawful association,” the notification said.
While declaring the Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir an outlawed organisation for five years, the central government had said that it was “in close touch” with militant outfits and was expected to “escalate secessionist movement” in the state.
The Centre also said it was of the opinion that the Jamaat was “in close touch with militant outfits” and was supporting extremism and militancy in Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere.
It said the outfit claimed “secession of a part of the Indian territory from the union” and was supporting terrorist and separatist groups fighting for this purpose. While banning the Yasin Malik-led Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, the Centre had said that the outfit was responsible for a series of violent acts and was in the forefront of separatist activities in the militancy-hit state since 1988.
Listing out its subversive and violent activities, Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba had said that the JKLF spearheaded the separatist ideology in the Kashmir Valley and the action was taken following the “zero tolerance” policy of the central government against terrorism.
“Murders of Kashmiri Pandits by JKLF in 1989 triggered their exodus from the valley. Malik was the mastermind behind the purging of Kashmiri Pandits from Kashmir Valley and is responsible for their genocide. “The JKLF has many serious cases registered against it. This organisation is responsible for the murder of four Indian Air Force personnel and kidnapping of Rubaiya Sayeed, daughter of the then Union home minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in the V P Singh government,” Gauba had said.