PFI had hit list of around 972 people in Kerala: NIA to court

Kochi: Banned Popular Front of India (PFI) had a hit list of around 972 people, including a former District Judge of Kerala, according to documents submitted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in a court here recently.

According to these NIA documents, PFI, through their secret 'Reporters wing' "collected and maintained the personal details of the people of other communities, including their position, name, age, photo, etc".

The NIA has claimed that PFI had three wings -- 'Reporters Wing', 'Physical and Arms Training Wing/PE', and 'Service Wing/Hit teams'.

"Through the ‘Reporters Wing’, a quasi-intelligence division of the PFI, it collected private and personal information of prominent personalities in the society, besides leaders of other communities, especially the Hindu community, including their day-to-day activities, the documents claimed.

"The data is compiled at the PFI district level and communicated to their state hierarchy. The details are regularly updated and utilised to target the individuals as and when required by the terrorist gang," the agency had told the court.

The content of the documents was mentioned in the Special NIA Court's order dismissing the bail plea of some of the accused in the 2022 S K Sreenivasan murder case.

Sreenivasan, a senior Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader, was hacked to death in his shop on April 16, 2022, allegedly by PFI activists.

The NIA, while opposing the bail pleas, had told the court that documents seized from various accused in the case indicated a list of around 972 persons, including a former Kerala District Judge, of "other community" who were targeted by the banned organisation.

It had also told the court that 'Periyar Valley campus', which was attached by the NIA, was allegedly an arms training centre of the PFI.

The central government had in September 2022 banned PFI and several of its associates for five years under a stringent anti-terror law, accusing them of having “links” with global terror groups like ISIS.