Kerala: NIA raids 56 locations linked to banned group PFI's leaders, members

Several Popular Front of India (PFI) leaders in Kerala had their homes searched by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday. A total of 56 locations throughout the state were targeted during the early hours of Thursday morning.

Several districts in Kerala were reportedly targeted by the raids: Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Alappuzha, and Malappuzha. At least eight locations in Ernakulam, four in both Alappuzha and Malappuram, and three in Thiruvananthapuram were raided by the agency.

Chinthoor, Vandanam, Veeyapuram, and Ochira in Alappuzha, as well as Edavanad, Aluva, and Vypin in Ernakulam district, were all inspected.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) recently submitted a report to a court in Kerala saying that senior members of the PFI were in contact with Al Qaeda via a variety of channels. The investigation group also alleged that the members were operating a covert branch that they planned to disclose at a later date.

During previous operations, the NIA was able to recover a handful of gadgets. A key finding from the agency's examination of these devices was evidence that senior members of the PFI had been in communication with members of Al Qaeda. According to our informant, they also possessed a "hidden wing."

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Under the strict anti-terror statute Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the union government prohibited PFI. PFI was charged with being a group affiliated with international terrorist organisations like IS.

The group was accused of spreading communal hate. A countrywide crackdown on the group prompted the ban.