Govt moves SC to get Simi ban extended

NEW DELHI: The centre on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court seeking extension of its order staying the lifting of the ban on Students��� Islamic Movement of India (Simi).

The outlawed outfit is under scanner for its role in terrorist activities across the country, including the recent serial blasts in Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Jaipur. The ���matter was of great importance��� and the stay, if not extended, would adversely affect the country���s interests, submitted additional solicitor-general Gopal Subramanium to a bench headed by Justice B N Agrawal.

Mr Subramanium appearing for government mentioned the matter before the bench also comprising Justice G S Singhvi and Justice J M Panchal.

The government���s law officer said that the matter which was scheduled to be heard on August 22 was not listed in the cause list of the apex court. It consists of the list of cases which were scheduled to be heard by the court. However, the confusion was cleared after the registry officials informed the bench that the matter was listed for hearing on August 25.

On August 6, the apex court had stayed Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal order which had lifted government���s restrictions on SIMI.

On Centre���s petition, the court had also issued notice to Simi and posted the matter for hearing after three weeks.
The government in its petition had said ���being a group of students and youth, Simi is easily influenced by hardcore Muslim terrorist organisations operating from Jammu and Kashmir. Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashker-e-Toiba have successfully penetrated into Simi cadre to achieve their goals���.

���Simi is against Indian nationalism and works to replace it with the International Islamic Order���, Centre had said.
Government further said that the tribunal failed to give due consideration to a cabinet note which was placed before it in a sealed envelope and also ignored the ���deposition of 77 witnesses��� including top officials of IB and intelligence agencies from states.

It said that a serious error was committed by the tribunal in arriving at a conclusion that the background note prepared by the ministry of home affairs was issued a month after the February 7 notification, extending the ban on Simi, to supplement the deficiency in it.

The tribunal ignored the opinion of the Centre that if the unlawful activities of the Simi are not curbed and controlled immediately, the organisation will continue its subversive activities and disrupt the secular fabric of the country by polluting the minds of people and creating communal disharmony, said government in its appeal.
It said that the tribunal order was passed without making any observation on the merits of the reference and without appreciating the oral and documentary evidence on record.

The Tribunal headed by the Delhi high court judge Justice Geeta Mittal had said that the Centre���s order of February 7 extending the ban on Simi beyond the six months was not backed by ������fresh������ evidence. Simi, which was banned in 2001, has been under the scanner of security and intelligence agencies since then for terror attacks in various parts of the country.

The ban was first imposed on Simi in 2001 under the Unlawful Activities (prevention) Act and since then it has been extended after every two years. The February 7 notification issued by the government was the fourth extension of the ban.