The Bombay High Court recently quashed an externment order issued by Navi Mumbai Police against Abdul Rahim Yakub Sayyed, a member of the Popular Front of India (PFI). 

Justice Shyam Chandak, presided over a single-judge bench, heard Abdul Rahim’s petition challenging the externment order upheld in an appeal by the Divisional Commissioner of Police.

Initially, Abdul Rahim had approached the Deputy Commissioner of Police against the order.

The police alleged that Abdul Rahim, along with his associates, engaged in unlawful assembly, agitation, breaches of prohibitory orders, and intimidation, creating a climate of fear in the Panvel City and Kala Chowki areas of Mumbai.

It was further claimed that he gathered young boys, delivered provocative speeches on caste disputes and anti-social activities, and coerced them into joining the banned organization, PFI.

In his defense, Abdul Rahim argued that there was insufficient evidence to justify the externment order. He contended that no offenses occurred within the Uran Police Station limits, making the inclusion of Uran taluq in the externment area unwarranted. Additionally, he pointed out the lack of rationale for fixing the externment duration at fifteen months.

The High Court, while setting aside the order, held that it was excessive and unreasonable.