According to the Kerala police, an officer has been suspended for allegedly having links with members of the banned Islamist organization Popular Front of India (PFI). As per a report by the Pothanikkad police station SHO, Ernakulam (rural) District Police Chief Vivek Kumar on October 4 issued an order suspending CA Siyad, the Civil Police Officer (CPO) is accused of having connections with PFI members.
According to the order, he was immediately suspended pending an investigation owing to his neglect of duty, indiscipline, and failure to carry out his duties, which not only tarnished the force’s reputation but also led the public to lose faith in the police. Additionally, it stated that a police officer assigned to the Kalady police station with the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police will look into the claims made against the CPO and submit a report with recommendations within 14 days.
According to the report, the CPO, CA Siyad, attempted to meet PFI members who were detained at the Perumbavoor police station in connection with the September 23 hartal-related violence and unofficially intervene in the matter without the knowledge or consent of his superiors.
The report claimed that he called up various police officers to enquire about the specifics of the case, arrests, and the chances of bail for the accused who were charged with offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act for violent acts, including damaging buses, during the illegal flash hartal on September 23 which was called by PFI members against nationwide raids and arrests of PFI members in a terror funding case.
Additionally, it stated that Siyad had repeatedly contacted other PFI activists after looking through his phone and finding their contact information. The investigation further said that the CPO was careless in his interactions with PFI activists despite being aware of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and murder charges against some of them.
Moreover, the report alleges that Siyad had received on his WhatsApp pictures of the murder of BJP OBC Morcha leader Ranjith Sreenivas in Alappuzha in December last year, allegedly by SDPI workers. The next day after Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) state secretary K S Shan was brutally murdered while en route home.
