Its advice has been used to justify a ban on much stem cell work - though most scientists and patient groups think the ban unethical.

Fire risk, distress to animals and 'the current geopolitical situation' have also been invoked to justify the ban.

In 1999 the appellate committee decided that the prison rules could not justify a ban on journalists visiting prisoners to write about their cases.

His promoters justified the banned substance's presence by claiming he took it at the end of the previous year while it was still legal, but the fight was cancelled nonetheless.

The censor board justified the ban, saying it was highly provocative and may trigger off unrest and communal violence.