Lucknow: Amid the ongoing pan-India crackdown against the Popular Front of India (PFI), the UP Police Special Task Form (STF) arrested one person early today.
The STF arrested a person identified as Abdul Majeed from the Vibhutikhand bus stand from Lucknow under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) when he was trying to leave the city, police said.
Electronic gadgets and incriminating literature related to PFI and ISIS were recovered from the accused, the police claimed. Accused Majeed is a close associate of arrested PFI leader Mohammad Wasim who was arrested from the Indiranagar area in Lucknow, they added.
The accused was arrested for spearheading the PFI network by “radicalising Muslim youth”, police said.
Joint teams of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Enforcement Directorate (ED) and police had conducted multiple raids across 15 states of the country against PFI on September 22 and arrested over 106 members.
The searches were conducted in connection with five cases registered by the NIA following “continued inputs and evidence” that the PFI leaders and cadres were involved in the funding of terrorism and terrorist activities, organising training camps for providing armed training and radicalising people to join banned organisations.
A large number of criminal cases have been registered in different states over the last few years against the PFI and its leaders and members for their involvement in many violent acts. Criminal violent acts “carried out” by PFI include chopping off the hand of a college professor, cold-blooded killings of persons associated with organisations espousing other faiths, collection of explosives to target prominent people and places, support to Islamic State and destruction of public property. They have had a demonstrative effect of striking terror in the minds of the citizens.
The PFI had on Friday called for a 12-hour shutdown in Kerala, which turned violent in parts of the state. Stone-pelting was witnessed at various places, including at the RSS office at Mattannur in Kannur. Two police officials were also injured in the incident in Kollam. (With inputs from ANI)
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