Govt Declares PFI As Unlawful Association Under Anti-Terror Law After Nationwide Raids

The government banned the PFI for a period of 5 years. Besides the PFI, its affiliates- Rehab India Foundation, All India Imams Council, National Confederation of Human Rights Organization, National Women's Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala have been declared as "unlawful associations".

Written by: India.com News Desk Edited by: Analiza Pathak

Updated: September 28, 2022, 7:44 AM IST

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Govt Declares PFI As Unlawful Association Under Anti-Terror Law After Pan-India Raids

New Delhi: Central Government declares PFI (Popular Front of India) and its associates or affiliates or fronts as an unlawful association with immediate effect, for a period of five years. The outfit is banned by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday for its alleged links to terror funding. “PFI and its associates or affiliates or fronts operate openly as a socio-economic, educational and political organization but, they have been pursuing a secret agenda to radicalize a particular
section of the society working towards undermining the concept of democracy and show sheer disrespect towards the constitutional authority and constitutional set up of the country,” said the government notification.

Govt notification on PFI ban

• The notification said PFI and its associates or affiliates or fronts have been indulging in unlawfulactivities, which are prejudicial to the integrity, sovereignty and security of the country and have the potential to disturb public peace and communal harmony of the country and support militancy in the country.
• The govt said some of the PFI’s founding members are the leaders of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and PFI has linkages with Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), both of which are proscribed organisations.
• There had been a number of instances of international linkages of PFI with global terrorist groups like the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)
• The PFI and its associates or affiliates or fronts have been working covertly to increase the radicalization of one community by promoting a sense of insecurity in the country, which is substantiated by the fact that some PFI cadres have joined international terrorist organisations, said the notification.

“The Central Government, having regard to the above circumstances, is of the firm opinion that it is necessary to declare the PFI and its associates or affiliates or fronts as an unlawful association with immediate effect, and accordingly, in the exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to sub-section (3) of section 3 of the said Act, the Central Government hereby directs that this notification shall, subject to any order that may be made under section 4 of the said Act, have effect for a period of five years from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette,” it said.

What is PFI?

Created in 2007, the organisation describes itself as the “organisation that fights for the rights of minorities, Dalits, and marginalised communities”.

It was founded after merging three Muslim organisations in southern India, the National Democratic Front in Kerala, the Karnataka Forum for Dignity, and the Manitha Neethi Pasarai in Tamil Nadu.

NIA raids on PFI

The announcement comes after the major crackdown on PFI by several law enforcement agencies. Earlier on September 22, multi-agency teams spearheaded by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested 106 leaders and activists of the PFI in 15 states for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country. The NIA is investigating 19 cases involving the PFI.

More than 170 people allegedly linked with the Popular Front of India (PFI) were detained or arrested in raids across seven states on Tuesday, five days after a similar pan India crackdown against the group often accused of being linked to radical Islam.

Conducted mostly by state police teams, the raids were spread across Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Delhi, Maharashtra, Assam and Madhya Pradesh.

As police teams fanned out across their respective states on Tuesday, seemingly synchronised, the action was swift. While 25 people each were arrested in Assam and Maharashtra, 57 were detained in Uttar Pradesh, officials said. The count of those detained in Delhi was 30, Madhya Pradesh was at 21 followed by 10 in Gujarat and six in Pune in Maharashtra. Besides, several people were also arrested in Karnataka.

Paramilitary forces were deployed in several places in the city where the raids were conducted.

Following the September 22 searches, the PFI said the raids are taking place at the homes of national, state and local leaders of the outfit and that the state committee office in Kerala is also being raided.