Jammu- The Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday delegated the power to state governments and Union Territory administrations for declaring Popular Front of India (PFI) and its affiliates or associates or fronts as unlawful Association under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
A notification issued in this regard by the ministry reads, “in exercise of the powers conferred by section 42 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the Central Government hereby directs that all powers exercisable by it under section 7 and section 8 of the said Act shall be exercised also by the State Government and the Union territory Administration in relation to the above said unlawful association”.
The government on Wednesday banned PFI and several of its associates for five years under a stringent anti-terror law, accusing them of having “links” with global terror groups like ISIS.
Besides PFI, the organisations which were also declared banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) include Rehab India Foundation, Campus Front of India, All India Imams Council, National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation, National Women’s Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala.
More than 150 people allegedly linked with PFI were detained or arrested in raids across seven states on Tuesday, five days after a similar pan-India crackdown against the 16-year-old group had led to the arrest of over a hundred of its activities and seizure of several dozen properties.
In a late Tuesday night notification, the Union Home Ministry said some PFI founding members are leaders of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and the PFI has linkages with Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). Both JMB and SIMI are proscribed organisations.
It said there had been many instances of international linkages of PFI with global terrorist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). (With PTI inputs)
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