KOCHI: The banned Popular Front of India (PFI), through its arms training wing, prepared instructors to impart uniform physical and arms training under a common syllabus with a set course to its cadre at various stages, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has informed the Ernakulam special court. The activities were allegedly carried out under the guise of yoga training, rescue and relief activities, martial arts, and other physical development programmes, it said..
According to the NIA, the PFI devised the programme to filter cadre through various stages and provided arms and explosives training to selected members through these stages. The organisation allegedly used its various facilities and affiliated institutions, including those run in the name of ‘trusts’, as well as other locations, to conduct such training camps and secret meetings.
The NIA alleged that the PFI used the trained cadre to eliminate shortlisted targets based on decisions taken by its leadership. It also claimed that selected cadre were used as executioners of decisions taken by their so-called pseudo court, the ‘darul qaza’. The agency said the PFI used its ‘reporters’ and ‘service’ wings to eliminate several individuals in Kerala. The PFI, its office-bearers, and cadre conspired to commit terrorist acts by killing targeted persons from other religions or sections of society to create terror, it said.
The NIA made these submissions while opposing the bail plea of the national in-charge of the PFI education wing and vice president of the affiliated All India Imams Council, Ashraf alias Ashraf Moulavi. He is the second accused in the murder of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader Sreenivasan in Palakkad.
The NIA submitted that the petitioner was part of the conspiracy to murder Sreenivasan in Palakkad on Aprwil 16, 2022, in order to create terror among the Hindu community and the public at large.
Considering the NIA’s submissions, the court dismissed the bail plea and observed that the evidence showed prima facie material indicating that the petitioner is a leader of the PFI.
The court further noted his alleged presence at the place of conspiracy and at the scene of the incident, as well as his role in the commission of the offence.
Through its ‘reporters’ wing, described as a quasi-intelligence division of the PFI, the organisation allegedly collected private and personal information about prominent personalities in society, including leaders of other communities, especially the Hindu community, along with details of their day-to-day activities, the agency said.
This data was compiled at the district level and communicated to the state hierarchy. The details were regularly updated and allegedly utilised to target individuals as and when required, it added. The agency further claimed that the PFI trained its cadre to collect such data, stored it, and shared it with its assault teams in the ‘service’ wing to carry out attacks as decided by the leadership.
NIA’s submission
Through its ‘reporters’ wing, PFI collected information about prominent personalities
Data was compiled and communicated to state hierarchy
PFI trained its cadre to collect such data, stored it, and shared it with its assault teams in ‘service’ wing to carry out attacks