Centre appeals SC to continue ban on SIMI

New Delhi, Aug 19 (UNI) The Central Government today filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging Delhi High Court orders to lift ban on Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

The appeal against the judgement of Special Tribunal headed by Justice Gita Mittal will come up for hearing on August 25.

A bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan had earlier stayed the operation of Delhi High Court judgement to lift the ban on SIMI for three weeks.

The Centre, in its appeal, has contended that the high court has ignored the inputs and the opinion of more than 75 senior officers belonging to IB, RAW and other intelligence agencies.

The appeal said SIMI was turning out to be the main suspect in recent Ahmedabad blasts and Gujarat police has already arrested 10 SIMI activists, who have renamed the banned organisation as Indian Mujaheedin that took responsibility for the blasts.

According to Union Home Ministry, SIMI was actively involved in terrorist and anti-national activities and has been rightly banned by the Union Government under the Prevention of Unlawful Activities Act.

According to the petition, the high court, in its over 260 page judgement on August five, has wrongly concluded that there was no fresh evidence against SIMI to justify the ban on the organisation.

The Centre had imposed a ban on SIMI in 2001, which was extended for two years in 2006.

A Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice S B Sinha, had earlier remarked that SIMI was an anti-national organisation and its activists were involved in terrorist activities.

Counsel for the Union Government today mentioned the petition for urgent hearing before a bench headed by Justice B N Aggarwal and submitted before the court that the three-week period was expiring on August 27.

UNI SC GL BD2040