NIA raids SDPI leader Riyaz Farangipete in Mangaluru
MANGALURU: Riyaz Farangipete, national secretary of SDPI, was raided by the NIA on Thursday. Riyaz’s house on BC Road, on the outskirts of Mangaluru, was raided by NIA sleuths in the wee hours of Thursday. According to local police sources, the raid was carried out in connection with a case in Bihar in July this year, for alleged conspiracy to disrupt a rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“His house at Parlya on BC Road was raided around 4.30 am, and the raid continued till 1.30 pm. NIA officers seized some documents, and left after questioning him,” said a police officer. However, neither the police nor NIA officials were willing to provide any further details about the raid.
“A person named Jalaluddin and others were arrested in connection with the threat to PM Modi in Bihar. Hence, there are allegations that he (Riyaz) has a link to this case,” informed a local police officer. Riyaz, who spoke to reporters after the raid, claimed that the NIA raided his residence in connection with a ‘false case’ registered in Bihar in July this year.
“I have cooperated with the NIA. In Bihar, the agency arrested a few people, including the Patna district SDPI secretary. I am in charge of Bihar state, and hence, the NIA has raided me. After 2014, all Central agencies, including the NIA, are under the BJP, and are working as per its instructions, instead of working as per the Constitution,” he alleged. Riyaz added that NIA officials seized his and his wife’s mobile phones, t-shirts and handbills of the party, and a few documents.
Multiple locations searched
The NIA shared a press release stating that searches were conducted at multiple locations in Bihar and Tamil Nadu, besides Karnataka, in connection with the PFI conspiracy case in Patna. It conducted searches at 20 locations linked with the accused and suspects in districts, including Dakshina Kannada, in the case pertaining to the involvement of PFI in alleged anti-national activities.