Following the NIA's extensive search operation against the Popular Front of india (PFI), the central government on tuesday imposed a five-year ban on the organisation. In a statement, the Center said that the group had been working on a covert plan to radicalise teenagers and undermine the idea of democracy. The NIA searched 93 locations across 15 indian states on Tuesday. In Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Delhi, Kerala, karnataka, tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Hyderabad, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, West Bengal, Bihar, and Manipur, more than 100 activists were detained. 106 individuals connected to PFI were detained by NIA earlier this month.

What is PFI?

When three organisations from Kerala, tamil Nadu, and karnataka decided to join to create a "pan-India organisation for empowering the Muslim people," PFI was established in 2006. The organisation has numerous branches, including the Social Democratic party of india (SDPI), its political front, the Campus Front of india, the National Women's Front, the Rehab india Foundation, and the Empower india Foundation, a think tank.

PFI is alleged to be a branch of the outlawed terrorist group Students' Islamic Movement of india (SIMI). The Enforcement Directorate has been unaware of it. Investigations into PFI's suspected sponsorship of the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests, the 2020 Delhi riots, and the alleged hathras conspiracy have been conducted by the agency that looks into financial crimes.


Why did the Center forbid PFI?

The central government claimed that while PFI and its affiliates operated as socioeconomic, educational, and political organisations, they had a covert agenda to radicalise a specific segment of society, work to undermine the idea of democracy, and exhibit blatant disrespect for the country's constitutional authority and legal system. The Centre said that PFI had engaged in illegal acts that were harmful to India's integrity, sovereignty, and security.


The Center said that the organization's founders had ties to the outlawed SIMI and that Jamat-ul-Mujahideen bangladesh is affiliated with PFI (JMB). It further alleged that the group had ties to international terrorist organisations like ISIS. According to the Centre, PFI and its partners have been scheming "to deepen the radicalization of one population by generating a sense of insecurity."

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