Central Government Declares Khalistan Tiger Force And J&K Ghaznavi Force As Terrorist Organisations

The central government on Friday banned the Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force (JKGF). JKGF has been formed with cadres from terrorist organizations such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen.

The government has also banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF). The Ministry of Home Affairs said, “It is a militant outfit and it aims to revive terrorism in Punjab and challenges the territorial integrity, unity, national security and sovereignty of India and promotes various acts of terrorism, including targeted killings in Punjab”.

Further, the Ministry of Home Affairs said, “Reinforcing the commitment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to strengthen national security and combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, the Ministry of Home Affairs under the guidance of Union Home Minister Amit Shah today declared one more individual and two organizations as Terrorist Organizations”.

Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act

In the exercise of the powers conferred by the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the JKGF, and the KTF has been designated as terror group, the notification stated.

According to a notification issued by the Union Home Ministry, the JKGF has been involved in infiltration bids, narcotics, and weapon smuggling, carrying out terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, and regularly issuing threats to security forces. “It draws its cadres from various terrorist organizations, such as Lashker-E-Taiba, Jaish-E-Mohammed, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul—Jehad-E-Islami, etc,” it added.

With the declaration of these two organizations as terrorist organizations, there is now a total of 44 designated terrorist organizations under the Ist Schedule of the Act.

In furtherance of India’s Zero Tolerance policy towards terrorism, the Centre has also amended the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in August 2019 to include the provision of designating an individual as a terrorist.

Prior to this amendment, only organizations could be designated as a terrorist organizations.

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