Manipur, J&K record maximum number of cases under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act

News:According to the National Crime Records Data(NCRB), more than 35% cases registered under the stringent Unlawful Activities(Prevention) Act (UAPA) were recorded in Manipur.Manipur was followed by Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Facts:

About UAPA Act,1967:

• The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,1967 is an act of parliament.It aims to curb certain unlawful activities including terrorist activities and related matters, carried out by individuals and associations in India and abroad.
• The Act defines unlawful activity as any action by an individual or association which is intended to bring about cession/secession or such action as to disrupt or question the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India.
• The act empowers the government to declare an organisation as ‘terrorist’ and ban it.Mere membership of a proscribed organisation itself becomes a criminal offence.
• It also allows detention without a chargesheet for up to 180 days and police custody can be up to 30 days.
• It creates a strong presumption against bail and anticipatory bail is out of the question.It creates a presumption of guilt for terrorism offences merely based on the evidence allegedly seized.
• The act was amended in 2004 which added terrorist act to the list of offences to ban organisations for terrorist activities under which 34 outfits have been banned.

Additional information:

About Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act 2019:

• The act empowers the government to designate individuals as terrorists if the person commits or participates in acts of terrorism, prepares for terrorism, promotes terrorism or is otherwise involved in terrorism.
• It also empowers the Director-General, National Investigation Agency (NIA) to grant approval of seizure or attachment of property when the case is being investigated by the agency.
• The act also allows the officers of the NIA, of the rank of Inspector or above to investigate the cases.

About NCRB:

• The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) is an attached office of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• The agency is responsible for collecting and analysing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL).