UAPA Sections 35, 36 and 37: Terrorist Designation, Delisting and Review

Section 35: Amendment of Schedule, etc.

Section 35 empowers the Central Government, by notification in the Official Gazette, to add, remove or otherwise amend entries concerning terrorist organisations in the First Schedule and individuals designated as terrorists in the Fourth Schedule. The provision also addresses organisations identified by United Nations Security Council resolutions under Chapter VII and empowers amendments to the Second and Third Schedules.

Section 35(1): Notification and listing

The Central Government may:

1. Add an organisation to the First Schedule or the name of an individual to the Fourth Schedule.
2. Add an organisation identified as a terrorist organisation by a United Nations Security Council resolution adopted under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, or the name of an individual to the Fourth Schedule, to combat international terrorism.
3. Remove an organisation from the First Schedule or an individual's name from the Fourth Schedule.
4. Amend the First Schedule or Fourth Schedule in another way.

Section 35(2) and (3): Grounds for designation

Listing under section 35(1)(a) requires the Central Government to believe that the organisation or individual is involved in terrorism. Involvement includes committing or participating in terrorist acts, preparing for terrorism, promoting or encouraging terrorism, or otherwise being involved in terrorism.

Section 35(4) and (5): Other schedules and Parliament

The Central Government may notify additions, removals or amendments to the Second Schedule or Third Schedule. Notifications under subsections (1) and (4) must be laid before Parliament as soon as practicable after issue.

Section 36: Denotification of terrorist organisation or individual

Section 36 provides a statutory procedure for requesting removal of an organisation from the First Schedule or an individual's name from the Fourth Schedule.

Section 36(1) to (3): Application

An application for removal may be submitted to the Central Government by the listed organisation, a person affected by the organisation's listing, or a person affected by the inclusion of their name in the Fourth Schedule. The Central Government may prescribe procedures for admission and disposal of applications.

Section 36(4): Review after rejection

If the Central Government rejects the application, the applicant may apply to the Review Committee established under section 37 within one month of receiving the refusal.

Section 36(5) to (7): Review and removal

The Review Committee may allow review if it considers the rejection flawed under principles applicable to judicial review. When the Committee allows the review and issues its order, the Central Government must, on receiving a certified copy, make an order removing the organisation from the First Schedule or the individual's name from the Fourth Schedule, as applicable.

Section 37: Review Committees

Section 37 requires the Central Government to constitute one or more Review Committees to consider reviews under section 36.

1. Constitution: One or more Review Committees must be constituted by the Central Government.
2. Membership: Each Committee consists of a Chairperson and not more than three other members possessing prescribed qualifications.
3. Chairperson: The Chairperson must be a serving or former High Court Judge appointed by the Central Government. Appointment of a serving Judge requires the concurrence of the Chief Justice of the High Court concerned.

Official Act, schedules and procedural rules

For the current entries in the First and Fourth Schedules and the rules governing delisting applications, consult the official consolidated Act, notifications and rules. The India Code UAPA record contains the Act and subordinate instruments; the official UAPA Act PDF provides the statutory text. The Ministry of Home Affairs counter-terrorism division publishes lists of designated organisations and individuals and the Procedure for Admission and Disposal of Application Rules, 2004, including amendments.

The 2019 amendment extended the listing and denotification framework to individuals through the Fourth Schedule. Current designations depend on subsequent Gazette notifications and should be checked against the official lists rather than assumed from the original Act alone.