NIA Charges Against PFI Activists Mere ‘Assumptions’: SDPI Leaders

by Abbas Adil

 Allegations levelled by the National Investigations Agency (NIA) in the chargesheet filed against top leaders and office-bearers of the banned organisation Popular Front of India (PFI) are mere “assumptions” and lacked “witnesses”, claimed the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) leaders.

SDPI is the political wing of the PFI.

In its chargesheet filed on Saturday, NIA said the banned outfit sought to establish Islamic rule in the country by overthrowing the democratically elected government in India. The PFI, the chargesheet added, planned to achieve its goal by uniting Muslims, providing armed training to its cadres and selective use of violence and dividing Hindus.

Advocate Sharfuddin Ahmed, vice president of the SDPI, told Clarion India that these allegations against the PFI have been levelled several times in the past. “They have not yet been proved in the court of law”, he said.

“These allegations are very old. They have levelled them in the high courts and even in the Supreme Court. We want to say that since it was taken to the court, the NIA will have to prove it in court. They could not prove it so far in the court,” said Ahmed, who is also general secretary of the All India Lawyers Council (AILC).

The NIA chargesheet named PFI chairman OMA Salman; vice chairman E.M. Abdul Rahiman; NEC members Anis Ahmed, Afsar Pasha, V.P. Nazaruddin, E. Abubacker, Prof. P. Koya, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Abdul Wahid Sait, A.S. Ismail, Advocate Mohd Yusuf, Mohammed Basheer, Shareef K.P. and Mohammed Shakif; and state PFI leaders Wasim Ahmed, Shahid Nasir, Jaseer K.P., Muhammed Farooq Ur Rahman and Yasar Arafat. All 19 have been booked under various sections of UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) and the IPC.

In September last year, the government launched a massive crackdown on the PFI and security agencies raided its 39 locations across the country. Following raids and searches, the organisation was declared unlawful.

During the last week, five chargesheets were filed against 105 accused related to PFI in five cases. These cases are related to Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.

Abdul Majid, state president of SDPI in Karnataka, said the actions against the PFI are based on “assumptions”.

“The claim to establish Islamic rule are just allegations. There are no such statements, activities and literature by the PFI. On the contrary, there are calls for establishing Hindu rashtra (nation). Big leaders are making statements about it. India is a secular country. No one can turn it into an Islamic nation, Hindu nation or Khalistan,” Majeed told Clarion India.

He asked why actions are not being taken against those who are calling for a Hindu nation, who are indulging in hate politics, causing communal riots by using people associated with Bajrang Dal and RSS.

“Is UAPA only meant for Muslims?” he asked.

Majeed feels that the government has hatched a conspiracy to finish off an organisation which is struggling for the empowerment of Muslims.

The NIA chargesheet cited the document titled ‘India 2047: Rule of Islam in India’ allegedly recovered during raids in the case pertaining to plans of PFI leaders and cadres.

Sharfuddin said that there was no mention of Islamic rule in the authorised literature of the PFI and the organisation has shown its allegiance to the constitution of India. The papers associated with the PFI were released by prominent people such as Justice Rajinder Sachar, Prof. Amitabh Kundu and former minister K. Rahman.

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