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HC upholds ban on Al Umma

The Madras high court today upheld the Tamil Nadu goverment's ban on Al Umma, a Muslim fundamentalist organisation, under the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1908.

Dismissing the petition filed by Al Umma leader S A Pasha, challenging the state government's notification banning the organisation, Justice K Govindarajan said only the amendment to the act made in 1950 was declared unconstitutional and void. But it could not be contended that the original provision under Section 15 (2) (b) of the CLAA, 1908, had also been declared as unconstitutional.

The judge said the section empowered the government to issue the notification and, as such, it could not be said the state had no jurisdiction or power to issue it.

On Pasha's submission that, since the 1950 amendment had been struck down, the state could not rely on the original provisions without making further amendment, the judge observed that it was contrary to the basic principle regarding the rule of construction of a statute. By declaring the amendment as ultra vires, the provision alone would go out of the statute book and cease to have effect. Hence, the submission could not be countenanced, he added.

UNI

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