PFI calls for day-long strike in Kerala on Friday to protest against NIA raids

Five arrested members of PFI have been brought to a session court in Mumbai by the ATS team.

Popular Front of India (PFI) has called for a day-long state-wide strike on September 23 in Kerala to protest against NIA raids and the arrest of some of its leaders.

20 PFI activists including five from Nanded have been detained in Maharashtra. We had received information that some activists of the PFI are indulging in anti-national activities, said Sandeep Khade, ATS SP, Aurangabad.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) during its searches seized a tab from Delhi PFI member Parvez. ED claimed that there were a lot of conversations between him and a Rajya Sabha MP of a major Delhi party. It is alleged that this conversation took place regarding the anti-CAA protests in Shaheen Bagh.

Inputs by Atul Bhatia.

As per reports, 6 control rooms have been setup for operation PFI in Delhi, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and other states. All officers including ADG was out for the operation. DG NIA was in the office whole night.

• Social  Democratic  Party of India (SDPI)
• All India Imams Council  (AIIC )
• Campus  Front of India  (CFI)
• EMPOWER  INDIA FOUNDATION  (EIF) 
• National  Confederation of Human rights organization (NCHRO),
• All India  Lawyer's Council AILC)
• National  Women  Front (NWF)
• Women  India Movement  (WIM)

Two teams of the NIA raided many places in Rajasthan's Kota-Bundi today. The relatives of PFI officials were also called for questioning, some people were also interrogated at the police station in Sangod town of Kota. PFI leader Asif Mirza is on NIA's radar.

In the ongoing raids by NIA and ED across parts of India, Delhi PFI member Parvez and Malegaon PFI member Saifur Rehman were arrested. In a first-ever largest action, a joint team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Enforcement Directorate (ED) and state police forces have arrested over 100 Popular Front of India (PFI) leaders during raids across the 10 states including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Assam.

Inputs by Rajesh Kumar, Atul Bhatia

The PFI was launched in Kerala in 2006 after merging three Muslim organizations floated after the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992 - the National Development Front of Kerala, Karnataka Forum for Dignity and Manitha Neethi Pasari of Tamil Nadu. After the demolition of the Babri mosque, many fringe outfits surfaced in south India and the PFI was formed after merging some of them. Now, PFI claims to have its units in 22 states. 

The National Investigation Agency has been conducting searches at the office of the Popular Front of India in Bihar's, Purnia district on Thursday. In a first-ever largest action, a joint team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Enforcement Directorate (ED) and state police forces have arrested over 100 Popular Front of India (PFI) leaders during raids across the 10 states including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Assam. As per the sources, these searches are being conducted at the residential and official premises of persons involved in "funding terrorism, organising training camps and radicalising people to join proscribed organisations".

In an early morning operation, ATS Maharashtra conducted a large number of raids in Aurangabad, Pune, Kohlapur, Beed, Parbhani, Nanded, Jalgaon, Jalna, Malegaon, Navi Mumbai, Thane & Mumbai: ATS Maharashtra. 4 offences were filed in Mumbai, Nashik, Aurangabad and Nanded in various sections of IPC and UAPA for indulging in unlawful activities promoting enmity amongst communities and for conspiring to wage war against state. 20 PFI-linked accused were arrested, said ATS Maharashtra.

NIA and ED is raiding places across India in several states including Kerala, Maharashtra, Assam, Karnataka, Gujarat, among others. NIA, ED along with state police have arrested over 100 cadres of PFI.  Sources said this is the largest ever probe conducted by NIA to date.