Government of India has banned the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) for five more years under the Unlawful (Activities) Prevention Act.
The Government said that SIMI is indulging in activities “prejudicial to the security of the country” and disturbing peace and communal harmony.
A notification of the Home Ministry of India said, “If the unlawful activities of SIMI are not controlled, the organisation will continue its subversive activities and re-organise its activists who are still absconding, disrupt the secular fabric of the country, propagate anti-national sentiments, escalate secessionism by supporting militancy and undertake activities which are prejudicial to the integrity and security of the country.”
In its notification, the Home Ministry listed 58 cases against members of SIMI. Some of the cases include the blasts in Gaya in 2017, M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore in 2014, and jailbreak in Bhopal in 2014.
SIMI was established on April 25, 1977, in Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh. The organisation has been alleged that it works on the agenda of liberating India by converting it into an Islamic state. It was first declared an outlawed outfit in 2001. Since then, it has been banned on several occasions.
