KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday arrested Muhammadali K P, the former Palakkad district president of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI), in connection with the 2022 murder of RSS leader Sreenivasan.
Muhammadali, who had been absconding for nearly four years, was arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi after arriving from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he had allegedly been hiding. With his arrest, the total number of accused arrested in the case has increased to 67.
According to the NIA, Muhammadali is among the 65 accused chargesheeted in the case and has been booked under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The agency alleged that he played a key role in the conspiracy behind Sreenivasan’s murder and had sheltered the assailants involved in the attack.
Sreenivasan was hacked to death at his shop in Palakkad on April 16, 2022.
The NIA had announced a reward of Rs 3 lakh for information leading to Muhammadali’s arrest, while an Interpol Red Notice had also been issued against him. The agency, which took over the investigation in September 2022, has alleged that the murder was part of a conspiracy by cadres of the banned PFI to carry out targeted killings aimed at creating communal unrest and advancing the outfit’s extremist agenda.