Office-bearer of banned PFI held in MP for ‘conspiracy against govt’

The Madhya Pradesh Police have arrested an office-bearer of the now-banned outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) from Bhopal on the charge of conspiring against the government and indulging in unlawful activities, an official said.

The arrest was made on Friday in connection with a case registered by the state police’s Special Task Force (STF) last year, he said.

”PFI member Wasid Khan (26), a resident of Sheopur, was arrested under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 121A (conspiracy to wage war against govt), 153B (assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) besides the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,” the official said.

Khan was associated with the PFI and had been attending the organization’s various programs and secret meetings since 2017, he said. In 2019, Khan joined PFI’s legal cell National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation (NCHRO), and held the post of its state general secretary, the official added.

Following his arrest, Khan was presented in a local court, which remanded him in police custody till February 8.

In September last year, the Centre 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.