Sep. 27 (EUROPA PRESS) –
Indian authorities have arrested more than 170 leaders and activists of the Islamic movement Popular Front of India (PFI) for urging Muslim youth to commit violent acts of an extremist nature.
The group has explained on its official Twitter profile that the arrests are a “witch hunt” by the central government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “It’s quite natural and expected under this autocratic system,” he stressed.
The arrests were carried out by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in different locations in India, in at least 15 states, on September 22, compared to the 109 detainees of the previous operation, according to the local newspaper ‘ The Hindu’.
As explained on Tuesday by Basavaraj Bommai, the head of the state of Karnataka, where at least 75 people have been arrested, this operation is being carried out as a “preventive measure” given the data that the NIA has about the organization.
The PFI emerged in Kerala in 2006 after the merger of three small Muslim organizations. The Modi government assures that the group has Islamist ties and finances terrorism through propaganda and training, as reported by the ANI news agency.
Clashes between Hindus and Muslims are frequent in India. In February, several institutions refused to admit female students wearing hijabs — and they are part of the Muslim minority — following an order from the Ministry of Education.
On the other hand, about 2 percent of the Indian population is Christian, and attacks by radical Hindus have increased in recent years. Since the Hindu nationalist BJP party came to power in 2014, attacks on Christians have increased by 60 percent, according to a report by the organization Persecution Relief.
