The UP police said that 25 people have been arrested with alleged links to the Popular Front of India (PFI), for their role in violence which marred protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act(CAA). According to UP police, PFI is another manifestation of the banned militant organization, SIMI. UP minister Mohsin Raza stated that PFI members tried to incite violence through their propaganda network and that SIMI, in any form would not be allowed to resurface in the state.
Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad also stated that the Centre was keeping a close watch on the activities of PFI and its SIMI link. The UP government had sought a ban on the organization for its role behind violence which broke out in many parts of UP, including Lucknow, Meerut, Sambhal, Kanpur and Muzaffarnagar. The Yogi Adityanath government has asked the Union Home Ministry to ban PFI for its SIMI link and for its role in the violence related to protests against CAA in many parts of the state.
The UP government stated that it had conducted a probe into the violence which erupted during the protests leading to loss of lives and causing injuries to many. Meanwhile, the PFI has denied any hand in the violence which marred anti-CAA protests in UP. The organization’s general secretary, Mohd. Ali Jinnah described the UP government’s charges as ‘absurd’.
