V.S. Sirpurkar, J.

This judgment shall dispose of the following criminal appeals, viz. Crl.A. Nos.749 to 752 and 764 TO 765 of 2003.

2. Criminal Appeal Nos.749 to 752 and 764 of 2003 have been filed by Pala Nedumaran, Pavanan, Subha Veerapandian, Thayappan and Shahul Hameed respectively. Criminal Appeal No.765 of 2003 has been filed by K. Paranthaman. All these accused persons are facing prosecution for the offences under Sec.21(1)(a), 21(2) and 21(3) of Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002 (in short 'POTA'), which offences are punishable under Sec.21(4) POTA and Sec.10 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and Sec.124(A), 153(A)1(A) of Indian Penal Code (IPC). The gravamen of the charge is that all these accused persons are sympathisers/followers of an organisaition called Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which organisation is a banned organisation under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and is also a scheduled organisation under Sec.18 of POTA. There is no dispute regarding the fact that LTTE is thus a banned organisation and exhorting support for which is an offence under Sec.21 of POTA.

3. It seems that a charge-sheet came to be filed in this matter on 20-1-2003 from which it is seen that the accused persons or most of them have been arrested on the basis of a complaint made by the Inspector of Police, Central Crime Branch, Chennai City on 14-4-2002 wherein it was complained that on 13-4-2002 evening, there was a indoor meeting organised by a Tamil Publication called "Tamil Muzakkam', having its office at No.29 Dr. Gurusamy Road, Chetpet, Chennai. It was alleged therein that the said indoor meeting took place insite the Anand Theatre, 689 Anna Salai, Chennai between 6.00 pm and 9.25 pm on the topic 'An interview with the renowned Liberation Tigers Chief - an evaluation'. It was alleged in the complaint that the said meeting was organised to discuss about the press meet held in Sri Lanka by the LTTE leaders namely Thiru Prabhakaran and Thiru Anton Balasingham and that it was conducted under the presidentship of Pala Nedumaran (A-1) and the rest of the accused, viz. Pavanan (A-2), Subha Veerapandian (A-3) and Thayappan (A-4) and others also participated in the said indoor meeting and addressed the gathering encouraging the support for the LTTE. It was alleged that all these accused persons belonged to a registered political party called 'Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam'. It was suggested in the charge-sheet further that Shahul Hameed (A-5), appellant in Criminal Appeal No.764 of 2003, is the proprietor of a Tamil publication called 'Tamil Muzakkam' and that the other accused persons are the active volunteers and sympathisers of said Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam.

4. It is then the prosecution case in this charge-sheet that LTTE was included as an organisation covered under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and that the Tribunal formed under that Act had confirmed the notification dated 14-5-1992 issued by the Government of India, declaring LTTE as an unlawful association under the said Act. A reference was made to the observations of the Tribunal in that order to 'Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam' being a radical chauvinist organisation indulging in terrorizing and dangerous activities with the object fo cession and disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India. It is then contended that on 14-5-1994, the said organisation LTTE was declared as an unlawful association. It was also alleged that A-1 Pala Nedumaran has authored a biographical account of LTTE leader Kittu under the title 'Kaviyanayakan Kittu' (Epic Hero Kuttu) and that 298 copies of the books were seized when they were about to be sent overseas and for that purpose a crime was registered against A-1 Pala Nedumaran. It is suggested that the pro-LTTE activities of A-1 Pala Nedumaran are to be found in the judgments of the Tribunal dated 13-11-1996 and 13-11-1998 also. Then there is a reference made again to the LTTE being declared as an