SC refuses to consider PFI's plea against ban under UAPA

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider a plea by the Popular Front of India (PFI) against the central government’s decision to impose a five-year ban on it and its eight affiliated organisations.

A bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi asked senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioner, as to why he had not approached the High Court in this regard.

The counsel said, "The court is right. I had advised Article 226 of the Constitution is available. But there are some pleas challenging [the ban] here."

The bench, however, dismissed the plea with a liberty to approach the High Court.

The plea by the PFI also challenged validity of an order by the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act's Tribunal headed by Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma in March, this year upholding the ban.

The tribunal was set up on October 3, 2022.

The tribunal examined if there is sufficient cause or not for declaring these organisations as unlawful associations.

On September 28, 2022, the Centre banned PFI and its associates or affiliates or fronts including Rehab India Foundation (RIF) Campus Front of India (CFI), All India Imams Council (AC), National Confederation of Human Rights Organization (NCHRO), National Women's Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala for five years.

The development came after years of investigations into the organisations for their involvement in "several criminal and terror cases" and their links with terror outfits like the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).

There were also allegations that the banned Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) besides PFI had close links with many terrorist organisations.

The government order had said that some of PFI's founding members were the leaders of the Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and that PFI had linkages with Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), both of which are proscribed organisations.

On November 30, 2022, the Karnataka High Court had dismissed a plea against the Union government's decision to ban the PFI with immediate effect.