Quite disappointing
PFI moves Delhi HC against UAPA Tribunal order upholding 5-year ban
The Popular Front of India (PFI) moved the Delhi High Court on Friday against a March 21 order of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) Tribunal, which upheld the Centre’s decision to ban the organisation for five years.
The counsel appearing for PFI apprised the High Court that on November 6, the Supreme Court had dismissed the outfit’s special leave petition challenging the tribunal’s order. The SC had, however, granted PFI the liberty to approach the Delhi High Court, which has jurisdiction over the subject-matter, with an appropriate application as permitted under law.
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Mini Pushkarna on Friday orally queried about the “contours of the jurisdiction of the High Court” in this matter while noting that its jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution was limited as it only empowered it to review aspects like natural justice and decision making.
“What will be the contours of the jurisdiction that we will exercise? The tribunal was headed by a High Court judge. We are not the appellate court. Prima facie it seems that we may not exercise appellate jurisdiction,” the bench said.
Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma appearing for the Centre said the pleadings in the petition have to be as per law.
Raising objection to the use of certain words such as “abuse of process”, “silence unlawfully”, “tyrannical approach”, as well as the grounds in the petition, the ASG argued, “We need to have at least the pleadings in order. There has to be a challenge in law to the decision-making process. The pleadings in law should impugn the decision-making process only. Let them at least sanitise the pleadings.”
The counsel for the petitioner argued that there was no discussion on the evidence in the tribunal’s order and there is no discussion or findings on the “defence’s evidence”.
The bench thereafter listed the matter on January 8, 2024. At this stage, the petitioner’s counsel submitted that if required they will move an application for amendment of pleadings.
On September 27, 2022 the Ministry of Home Affairs in a gazette notification declared the PFI an “unlawful association” along with “its associates or affiliates or fronts”. The ministry said the PFI and its affiliates were linked to terror groups such as ISIS, propagating “anti-national sentiments… radicalising a particular section of society with the intention to create disaffection” and constituted a “major threat to internal security of the country”.
The notification stated that subject to an order passed by the tribunal under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the notification will be in effect for five years from the date of its publication.
Once an organisation is declared unlawful under UAPA, a tribunal is set up by the Centre to adjudicate whether there is sufficient grounds for the decision. Under UAPA, no such notification by the Centre shall have an effect until the tribunal in its order confirms the declaration made in the notification and the order is published in the official gazette.
Express News Service – 2023-12-09 02:10