Hiva Alizadeh, convicted in a terror conspiracy, is challenging new provisions that allow the government to revoke citizenship from someone convicted of terrorism, treason or espionage if they hold nationality in another country.

In an application to the Federal Court of Canada, the Iranian-born man says the provisions breach the principles of fundamental justice enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

He also argues that taking away his citizenship would improperly deny him the right to vote and prevent him from freely entering and remaining in Canada.

Alizadeh, who is 36, was sentenced to 24 years in prison upon pleading guilty in Ottawa last year to possessing explosives with intent to do harm.

The custodian and part-time student was arrested in Ottawa in August 2010 along with two other men.

Police seized terrorist literature, videos and manuals along with dozens of electronic circuit boards designed to detonate homemade bombs remotely.

The federal Conservatives argue terrorism is a crime so grave that perpetrators are unworthy of holding citizenship. Critics say stripping someone's right to be a citizen is akin to the medieval practice of banishment.