Assam police arrest 25 more PFI members from eight districts

At least 25 leaders and members of Popular Front of India (PFI), who were under the scanner of Assam police since the agitation against the Citizens Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), were arrested from eight districts of the state on Tuesday.

With this, the total number of PFI workers arrested in the state since September 22 is now 36. The special operations unit of the state police had earlier arrested 11 PFI leaders for their alleged efforts to foment communal tension by criticising the government policies, including the CAA, NRC, eviction of Muslim families from government land etc.

In a statement on Tuesday, Assam police headquarters said that PFI workers were arrested from Goalpara (10), Kamrup (5), Dhubri (3), Barpeta and Baksa (two each), and one each from Udalguri, Darrang and Karimganj. “Fresh cases have been registered in different districts,” it said.

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Nearly 33 per cent of Assam’s population is Muslims, and the eight districts have sizeable Muslim population.

A senior police officer told DH that although fresh cases were registered on Tuesday, most of them were under the scanner of police and state intelligence agencies since Assam witnessed violent protests against the CAA and the NRC.

“Our cyber cell kept a close watch on their social media platforms and most of their posts were against government activities and policies. They have always tried to project everything as anti-Muslim,” said the official.

Muslim organisations had expressed anger as 19.06 lakh applicants, half of which were Muslims, were left out of the “final list” of the updated NRC. Similarly, they protested against the CAA, as it sought to offer citizenship to only the non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan till December 2014.

Ten PFI members were arrested on September 21 by the Assam police when the National Investigation Agency (NIA) launched a country-wide crackdown against the organisation. They were arrested in connection with a case registered by the Assam police in February.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state police has registered a case against the PFI and even requested the Centre to ban the organization.

On September 21, Assam police had stated in a release: “They were indulging in whipping up the communal passion and sentiments of the religious minority by criticizing every policy of the government with communal overtones which include Citizenship Amendment Act. National Register of Citizens and D (doubtful) voters, the new State Education Policy, Cattle Protection Act, extension of AFSPA, TET examination, Agnipath scheme, eviction in encroached government lands with a view to term these actions of the government as an attack on the Muslim community.”