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ED arrests SDPI chief, says party funded by banned PFI
The Centre alleged the outfit, whose members are largely based in Kerala, was fuelling radicalisation and involved in terror-funding
The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Moideen Kutty K alias MK Faizy, the national president of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), on the grounds that the party carries forward the ideology and agenda of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) and is funded by it.
People familiar with the development said that Faizy, 55, a resident of Palakkad in Kerala, was arrested at Delhi airport around 9.30pm on Monday under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), days after the financial crimes probe agency raided Faizy’s residence in Kerala on February 28.
PFI and its eight affiliate organisations were banned by the ministry of home affairs under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or UAPA, on September 28, 2022, after a nationwide crackdown by ED and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) led to arrests and the recovery of purported incriminating documents from offices and homes of the outfit’s office-bearers.
The Centre alleged the outfit, whose members are largely based in Kerala, was fuelling radicalisation and involved in terror-funding.
At the time of the crackdown in 2022, SDPI’s offices in multiple cities were also raided and the party’s activities have been under the scanner of both ED and NIA.
ED has so far identified proceeds of crime worth ₹4.07 crore, which was allegedly transferred from PFI to SDPI.
It has till date arrested 26 members of PFI and filed nine charge sheets, besides attaching assets worth ₹61.72 crore.
Apart from Faizy, who is the founding member of SDPI, former PFI chairpersons OMA Salam and E Abubacker, who were the senior-most leaders, have also been arrested.
In 2022, ED linked Faizy with Kerala-based PFI leader Abdul Razak BP, who allegedly transferred ₹2 lakh to an account as part of the fund-raising activities.
While seeking his remand from a Delhi court on Tuesday, ED said: “The overlapping membership of cadres of PFI-SDPI, involvement of PFI office bearers in the founding of SDPI, utilisation of each other’s assets and their statements under Section 50 of PMLA evidence the deep-rooted nexus between these two organisations and that SDPI is a front organisation through which PFI has been carrying out its anti-national and criminal activities even while overtly taking a stand that PFI is a social welfare organisation.”
ED’s remand note, seen by HT, said: “PFI used to control, fund and supervise the activities of SDPI; SDPI was majorly dependent on PFI for its day-to-day functions, policymaking, selecting candidates for election campaign, public programs, cadre mobilisation, and other related activities.”
The note further said that PFI set up SDPI as a front entity in 2019 to carry out its political agenda. “Though overtly it claimed that SDPI and PFI acted independently, investigation has revealed that both are organically linked and SDPI is nothing but the political front of PFI and was funded and controlled by PFI,” ED added.
Citing a document titled, “Conceptual clarity about organisation and party”, ostensibly recovered during the probe, ED argued that the document provides insight into the true objectives of PFI, describing it as an organisation “committed to advancing an Islamic movement in India by endorsing the principles of Jihad in all forms”.
It also claimed that it recovered several documents showing approval by PFI for SDPI to collect funds from Gulf countries, and PFI covering the legal expenses of SDPI members.
SDPI, a registered political party,rejected the charges.
SDPI condemned the arrest, and posting a statement on its X account, it said, “The arrest is nothing but part of vendetta politics to suppress the dissent and to oppress the political opponents.”
Last year, NIA arrested SDPI member Ghouse Nayazi in connection with the 2016 murder of RSS leader R Rudresh. SDPI leaders and members have also been named by NIA in a 2010 incident in which the hand of a professor, TJ Joseph, of Newman College at Idukki in Kerala was chopped off in the Muvattupuzha police station area by seven people linked with PFI and SDPI. Joseph was targeted as he had prepared a question paper for internal examinations in the college out of which one question allegedly contained derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad.
