Khushi Gupta:
Published on: April 14, 2022 at 18:44 IST
After appointing relatives of Lashkar-Toiba (LeT), King Hafiz Saeed and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) Chief Masood Azhar as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), the institution has now appointed Kashmir resident Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar. as terrorists.
Hailing from Srinagar, Zargar, 52, was one of three terrorists released by India in exchange for hostages hijacking an Indian Airlines 814 in 1999.
“Zargar is a threat to peace, not only to India, but across the world, with his contacts and proximity to radical terrorist groups like the Al-Qaeda and Jaish-e-Mohammed… The Central Government believes that Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar alias Latram is involved in terrorism and the said Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar is to be notified as a terrorist under the said Act,” said a gazette notification issued Wednesday by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
According to the announcement, Zargar is the founder and commander of Al-Umar-Mujahideen, a banned organization under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, and has previously worked with the Jammu-Kashmir Liberation Front. He had gone to Pakistan to receive illegal weapons and ammunition training.
“Zargar has been running an incessant campaign from Pakistan to fuel terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir,” the notification has said.
The institute amended the Illegal Acts (Prevention) Act, 1967, in August 2019, to provide for the designation of a person as a terrorist. Prior to this amendment, only organizations could be designated as terrorist organizations.
Being appointed as a terrorist helps the government to finance and reduce the networks created by each terrorist. Clause (a) of subsection (1) of section 35 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act empowers the Agency to disclose a person’s name in Schedule Four of the Act if we believe he or she is involved in terrorism.
Also Read: Analyzing the Anti-Terror Legislation- Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act