The Popular Front of India, its affiliates, allies, and fronts were all deemed unlawful associations by the Centre on Wednesday for a five-year period. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the PFI has connections to Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and some of its founding members are leaders of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), both of which are banned organisations.
Among the organisations the MHA has barred for "unlawful association" with PFI are the Rehab India Foundation (RIF), Campus Front of India (CFI), All India Imams Council (AIIC), National Confederation of Human Rights Organization (NCHRO), National Women's Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation, and Rehab Foundation, Kerala.
The central government's notification comes five days after a similar pan-Indian campaign against the organisation frequently accused of having ties to radical Islam and a day after over 200 people reportedly connected to the PFI were detained or arrested in raids spanning seven states.
The raids, which took place in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Delhi, Maharashtra, Assam, and Madhya Pradesh, were mostly carried out by state police units. 106 PFI leaders and activists were detained on September 22 in 15 states by multi-agency teams led by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for allegedly aiding terrorist activities across the nation.
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