The Popular Front of India (PFI) and its leaders are once again the target of a crackdown led by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and supported by the relevant state police agencies. As part of this, the authorities detained up to 25 local leaders from the PFI and its political splinter group, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), in Karnataka on Tuesday.
Raids are currently taking place at locations connected to PFI leaders in various regions of Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Delhi, Maharashtra, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh, according to news agency ANI. More than 30 persons from various locations in Delhi were also alleged to have been apprehended.
Two PFI-related individuals have been detained by the Nashik police in the interim. Later on in the day, they will appear in court. Raids are occurring in Malegaon town, according to the Nashik Police to ANI.
For alleged anti-national actions, police in Maharashtra’s Thane district also detained four PFI activists from various locations. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Laxmikant Patil, the arrests were made on Monday night during a joint operation in the district by members of the local police and crime branch.
The police also conducted raids on PFI leaders’ homes on Tuesday around the Udupi district. During these raids, four people were brought into jail in relation to separate offences, according to news agency PTI.
In Gujarat, at least 10 persons have been detained and questioned for possible connections to the PFI.
In the meantime, five PFI activists were detained in the Keralan districts of Kottayam and Kollam for allegedly participating in violent acts on September 23 during the state-wide hartal that the organisation had declared. This was the result of nationwide raids on their offices and the detention of their leaders.
