SDPI threatens to hold protests across Karnataka if NIA does not release PFI leaders
MANGULURU: The Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) has declared to hold agitation throughout the state if the NIA does not release the 21 Popular Front of India (PFI) leaders by Friday morning.
NIA conducted searches at the office of the Popular Front of India (PFI) and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) in Mangaluru and also the PFI office and residence of leaders in several parts of the state during the early hours on Thursday.
The NIA officials had also seized documents and other materials from the offices and also some leaders into their custody.
The team of NIA officials arrived at the PFI office situated at Nellikai Road in Mangaluru around 3 am and conducted a search. PFI and SDPI offices are situated in the same building. The search continued for about 4 hours. The officials also conducted searches at the residence of some of the leaders. The PFI and SDPI workers arrived at the spot and started shouting slogans like ‘Go Back NIA.’ Local police were deployed to control the situation.
Speaking to reporters SDPI district president Aboobacker Kulai defined the NIA’s action as politically motivated to malign PFI and SDPI.
He said that 21 PFI leaders including five from DK were taken for questioning.
The SDPI leaders stated that the NIA officials had taken AK Ashraf Jokatte (State secretary), Mohiyuddin Haleyangadi, Mohammed Tafseer Abdul Khader (PFI state committee members), and Nawaz Kavoor (Mangaluru Rural district unit president).
“They are innocent and should be released by Friday morning. If the NIA does not release them, we will stage protest throughout the state legally,” he declared.
SDPI state committee member Athavullah Jokatte condemned the way the NIA had conducted a search in the office of a registered political party.
“They took about 20 articles from the office including the hard disk of two computers,” he said.
The SDPI is also planning to take up a legal fight against the defamatory statements by Home Minister Araga Jnanendra and false charges on PFI and SDPI activists.
The NIA team also conducted the search in Uttara Kannada, Kalburgi, and Koppal districts. PFI held a protest in these places.
Meanwhile, Sri Rama Sene founder Pramod Muthalik reiterated his demand to ban PFI.
“If they had conducted such raids before and controlled PFI then the murder of Hindu workers like Praveen Nettaru, Harsha could have been prevented,” he said.
