
Mukesh Ranjan
New Delhi, February 13
In what has set alarm bells ringing for security agencies, the ISIS has asked the cadres of Popular Front of India (PFI), banned recently under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), to join the global terror outfit under its ‘black flag’.
Terror alert
- ISIS’ Afghanistan unit has made the appeal via its mouthpiece ‘Voice of Khorasan’
- It has asked the cadre of PFI, banned recently in India, to join it
- The mouthpiece alleged harassment of Muslims in India
The ISIS made the appeal through its mouthpiece ‘Voice of Khorasan’ in an article titled ‘Crackdown on Popular Front of India: Lessons for Indian Muslims’, said Indian Intelligence sources. The 45-page magazine was published by ISIS affiliate Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), the terror outfit operating in Afghanistan. The mouthpiece alleged that the recent police actions against SIMI and the PFI in India were aimed at “harassing innocent Muslims”.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), in joint operations with the police of several states, recently arrested over 100 Popular Front of India members for allegedly indulging in anti-India activities and executing targeted killings of non-Muslims. The Maharashtra Police also filed a chargesheet against the PFI in court claiming the outfit was “conspiring to make India a Muslim nation by 2047”.
Officials in the security establishment said they had found that terror operatives were making desperate efforts to strengthen the Islamic State in Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK) network in the country and, therefore, attempts were being made to brainwash Muslim youth and incite them to join the ISIS. The ISJK has now been eyeing the members of the banned PFI, they said.
“During the raids against the PFI, the NIA seized documents that showed that operatives of the banned outfit were in the know of mechanism to manufacture bombs and weapons,” a senior official said. It was also found that the PFI had created “hit squads” for targeted killing of non-Muslims, particularly those associated with the RSS and the BJP, he said, adding that cases of such murders were reported from a few southern states, including Kerala.