M A I N   N E W S

Centre bans 23 terrorist outfits
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 25
The Centre today justified the promulgation of the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) saying “it is the first comprehensive legal salvo against terrorism with complete safeguards to check the menace speedily and effectively.” Under the ordinance, 23 organisations have been banned.

Briefing newspersons here, Union Home Secretary Kamal Pande said care had been taken to ensure that the 50-page, 61-clause ordinance avoided all pitfalls and criticisms that the erstwhile Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act (TADA), which expired in 1995, had to face.

Justifying the promulgation of the ordinance, Mr Pande said there was an upsurge in terrorist activities, intensification of cross-border terrorism and insurgent groups in different parts of the country and the existing criminal justice system was not designed to deal with the types of heinous crimes that had appeared in the country in the past 50 years.

The ordinance defines terrorist acts as those done by using weapons and explosive substances or other methods in a manner as to cause or likely to cause death or injuries to persons or loss or damage to property or disruption of essential supplies and services with intent to threaten the unity or integrity of India or to strike terror in any section of the people.

It also has a comprehensive definition of terrorist organisations indulging in terrorist acts and provides for proscribing them under a set procedure.

A total of 23 organisations have been banned under the ordinance, which Mr Pande said, would be placed before Parliament in the form of a Bill for approval soon.

“The ordinance, of course, will have to be passed through Parliament as it will be valid for a maximum period of six months...it will be placed before Parliament,” he said.

Stating that all state governments and other departments concerned were consulted twice on the various provisions of the ordinance and their suggestions were taken note of and included wherever necessary before it was promulgated, Mr Pande said “special features/safeguards have been built in to prevent the possibility of misuse of the special power given to investigating authorities also keeping in view the observations of the Supreme Court.”

Asked about the mounting criticism over the clause pertaining to “disclosure of information”, which is equally applicable to journalists, Mr Pande said the clause was in line with the provisions pertaining to “suppression of information” already existing in CrPC and the IPC.

Section 3(8) of the ordinance places responsibility on all persons to disclose information which the person knows or believes to be of material assistance in preventing any terrorist activity as soon as reasonably practicable to the police. However, exception has been provided in case of persons engaged as legal attorney of the accused who may have acquired such knowledge for the purpose of preparing the defence for the accused.

Section 14 provides a new provision which makes it obligatory to furnish information in respect of a terrorist offence. Failure to furnish the information called for or deliberately furnishing false information to investigating officer shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or fine or both. The investigating officer can call for such information only with prior approval in writing of an officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police.

Mr Pande said Section 32 provided for admissibility of confessions made to a police officer under certain conditions. But unlike TADA, the confession of an accused shall not be admissible as an evidence against a co-accused. Further such confessions had to be made before a police officer not lower in rank of a SP and had to be further recorded with a Chief Judicial Magistrate within 48 hours.

There is a provision to review the ban and a review committee headed by a sitting or retired judge of a high court will be constituted to hear such applications.

Financing of terrorism, possession of unauthorised arms, explosive substances or other lethal weapons capable of mass destruction and/or use in biological and chemical warfare have also been brought under the purview of this ordinance and the punishment could range from three years imprisonment to life imprisonment or fine or both and also death penalty.

Twentythree organisations, including Deendar Anjuman, the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and some of the almost defunct outfits in Punjab have been branded as terrorist organisations in the ordinance.

The hurriedly promulgated ordinance lists the Babbar Khalsa International, the Khalistan Commando Force, the Khalistan Zindabad Force and the International Sikh Youth Federation among the list of terrorist outfits.

The ordinance has also branded almost all Kashmiri and North-East militant outfits and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as terrorist organisations.

The outfits operating in Kashmir, which have been listed as terrorist organisations, are the Lashkar-e-Toiba/Pasban-e-Ahle Hadis, the Jaish-e-Mohammed/Tahrik-e-Fuqran, the Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami, the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen and the Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front.

The North-East outfits which have been branded as terrorist organisations, under Chapter III of the ordinance which deals with the terrorist organisations, are the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the United National Liberation Front (UNLF), the People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), the Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP), the Kanglei Yaol Kanba Lup (KYKL), the Manipur People’s Liberation Front (MPLF), the All-Tripura Tiger Force and the National Liberation Front of Tripura.

Meanwhile, the government will seek to replace three ordinances, including the controversial POTO in the forthcoming winter session of Parliament beginning on November 19.

The Union Cabinet, at its special meeting here today, decided not only on the dates of Parliament’s winter session but also on seeking the passage of the three ordinances.

Briefing newspersons after the meeting, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan said the government was confident of getting the Opposition’s support on POTO, despite some of the parties having extreme reservations on it. POTO seeks to fill the void created following the lapsing of TADA.

The minister was of the view that such a law was necessary in the prevailing conditions in the country and would help the government and the police in combating terrorism. He added that the Opposition was equally concerned about terrorism.

The minister said that two other ordinances, seeking to replace the ordinance on passport and the buy-back of shares would also come up for consideration during the session, which would have a total of 23 sittings.

The Bill seeking to replace the ordinance on passport would give the government, both the Centre and state, powers to suspend the passport or the travel documents of any citizen who it may suspect to be a terrorist. The ordinance signed by President K.R. Narayanan, came into force from October 23. It seeks to make amendments to the Indian Passport Act of 1967.

The ordinance on buy-back of shares was promulgated following a long-pending demand of the industry. It will enable companies to buy-back up to 10 per cent of their equity every six months against the prevailing restriction of two years.