The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Friday revealed that PFI’s office bearers, members, and cadres, along with others, were involved in radicalising and recruiting Muslim youth to join proscribed terror organisations like ISIS. The disclosure came while seeking remand for the 106 members and cadres of the Popular Front of India (PFI) arrested in the country’s first-ever massive operation against the extremist Islamic organisation.
PFI office bearers were recruiting Muslim youth to join proscribed organisations like ISIS: NIA
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In the remand note, the counter-terror agency said that the PFI office bearers and members were raising funds for terror acts.
“The Central Government has received credible information that the office bearers, members and cadres of Popular Front of India along with others, are conspiring and raising or collecting funds from within India and abroad for committing or getting committed, terrorist acts in various parts of India including states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi,” the document stated.
“In pursuance to the conspiracy, the accused persons are also involved in acts preparatory to the commission of terrorist acts using weapons, with an intention to strike terror in the minds of the general public,” the NIA notified a special court in writing, citing its First Information Report, which was filed on April 13 this year in accordance with the Ministry of Home Affairs’ directive (MHA).
In the accused’s remand copy, the NIA explicitly states how, “in pursuance to the conspiracy, they (PFI leaders, office bearers and others) were involved in radicalizing and recruiting Muslim youth to join proscribed organisations like ISIS”.
“Criminal violent acts carried out by PFI such as chopping off the hand of a college professor, cold-blooded killings of persons associated with organisations espousing the other faiths, collection of explosives to target prominent people and places, support to Islamic State and destruction of public property have had a demonstrative effect of striking terror in the minds of the citizens,” said the NIA.
The note also stated that the accused were training individuals to engage in terrorist activities and foment communal hatred.
“The accused persons are also involved in promoting enmity among different groups and thereby causing communal disharmony in the society through social media and other platforms,” it added.
NIA raids PFI offices and houses across 10 states, 106 members, including top leaders arrested
The revelations came after the federal agencies led by NIA had on Thursday conducted raids across 10 states, including Assam, Bihar, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana and arrested 106 PFI activists for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country.
The agency arrested 106 cadres, including top leaders of the organization. The maximum number of arrests was made in Kerala (22) followed by Maharashtra and Karnataka (20 each), Tamil Nadu (10), Assam (9), Uttar Pradesh (8), Andhra Pradesh (5), Madhya Pradesh (4), Puducherry and Delhi (3 each) and Rajasthan (2).
As per reports, the raids were conducted by joint teams of NIA, Enforcement Directorate (ED), and respective State Police, and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs was monitoring the action against the organization.
These searches were conducted at the homes and offices of top PFI leaders and members in connection with five cases registered by the NIA in response to ongoing inputs and evidence that the PFI leaders and cadres were involved in funding terrorism and terrorist activities, organising training camps for armed training, and radicalising people to join banned organisations.
As of date, the NIA is investigating a total of 19 PFI-related cases, including five registered recently.
