New Delhi:A Tribunal headed by Delhi High
Court judge Mukta Gupta Monday issued notices to Nagaland and
Meghalaya governments on the Centre`s plea seeking its nod to
extend the ban on militant outfit United Liberation Front of
Asom (ULFA) by two more years.
"Issue fresh notices to the states of Nagaland and
Meghalaya through their Chief Secretaries and they be directed
to filed their affidavits," Justice Gupta said while fixing
the matter for further hearing on February 14.
The tribunal is hearing the plea of the Ministry of Home
Affairs (MHA) seeking its nod to extend the Government`s
notification, issued on November 27, last year, to extend the
ban by two years on the militant outfit on the ground that it
has so far not abjured violence.
The panel, meanwhile, took the affidavits of the MHA and
Assam government into the records.
The evidence by way of affidavits be filed by the parties
concerned within a week so that the matter could be decided by
the end of March, Justice Gupta said.
"There is nobody present on behalf of the United
Liberation Front of Asom. Thirty days time has to be given to
the outfit to file their objection against the notification.,"
the panel said.
Additional solicitor general A S Chandiok, appearing
for the Centre, informed the panel that the notices have been
published in various north-eastern states regarding the
notification on extension of ban on ULFA.
Earlier, the panel issued notices to the various state
governments and had also sought responses from the banned
outfit on the Centre`s notification.
The MHA had decided to re-impose the ban on the ULFA as
an unlawful organisation on the ground that "the outfit is yet
to abjure violence".
The ban, which was slapped in accordance with the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, was first imposed
in 1990. Since then, the order has been re-imposed every two
years.
Recently, the outfit`s chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa,
`foreign secretary` Sasadhar Choudhury and `finance secretary`
Chitraban Hazarika have been released from jail in a bid to
explore the possibilities for talks with government.
PTI
