New Delhi: The Union Government on Friday designated the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Freedom League (JKPFL) as an 'Unlawful Organisation' under the anti-terror law for five years. A notification by the Home Ministry said that all factors of the league are involved in promoting, aiding and abetting secession of the Union Territory from India by involvement in anti-national and terrorist activities.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, four factions of Jammu and Kashmir Peoples League (JKPL) have been indulging in unlawful activities, which are "prejudicial to the integrity, sovereignty and security of the country. All the leaders and members of all factions of the league have been involved in mobilising violent protests in various parts of Jammu and Kashmir for perpetrating unlawful activities, including sustained stone-pelting on security forces, it said.
The organisations have also been accused of sowing seeds of disaffection among people, exhorting people to destabilise public order, encouraging the use of arms to separate Jammu and Kashmir from India, promoting hatred against the government and calling for the boycott of elections on multiple occasions.
"The Modi government has designated the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Freedom League as an 'Unlawful Association' for five years. The organization threatened India's integrity by promoting, aiding and abetting the secession of Jammu and Kashmir through terrorism. The Modi government will remain unsparing to people and organizations involved in terror activities," said Union Home Minister Amit Shah on X.
Why was JKPFL banned?
The Centre said if there are no immediate curbs on JKPL's activities, they will continue with the anti-national activities that are detrimental to the security and sovereignty of the country, continue advocating for the secession of the Union Territory and continue propagating false narratives and anti-national sentiments among the people to cause disaffection against Indian and disrupt public order.
The designation against all four factions of the league was made under Section 3(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967. The Centre declared JKPL (Mukhtar Ahmed Waza), JKPL (Bashir Ahmad Tota), JKPL (Ghulam Mohammad Khan) also known as Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Political League and JKPL (Aziz Sheikh) led by Yaqoob Sheikh as ‘unlawful associations’ with immediate effect for a time of five years.
Centre extends ban on JKLF
The Centre also extended the declaration of the 'Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (Mohd. Yasin Malik faction)' as an 'Unlawful Association' for a further period of five years, announced Home Minister Shah. He said the banned outfit continues to engage in activities that foment terror and secessionism in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Anyone found challenging the security, sovereignty and integrity of the nation will face harsh legal consequences," he asserted. The JKLF was banned in 2019 under the anti-terror law, days after the Centre banned Jamat-e-Islami (JeI-J&K) under the UAPA law
It is worth mentioning that the 57-year-old Yasin Malik has been charged with terror funding in 2017 and arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2019. He was sentenced to life imprisonment last year. Yasin Malik is accused of kidnapping former Union Home Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's daughter Rubaiya Sayeed in exchange for the release of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leader Ghulam Nabi Butt. He is also accused of killing Indian Air Force officers in 1990.
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