Inside PFI's Terror Plot: Judges, Activists, RSS Leaders On 'Hit Lists', Reveals NIA
The structure and functioning of PFI resemble that of terrorist organisations, incorporating surveillance-intelligence cells, armed squads, and global funding.
The Popular Front of India (PFI) has been implicated in an extensive conspiracy to target Hindu civil society leadership in India, revealed through the meticulous investigations of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). This operation is not arbitrary but represents an ideologically driven, military-style effort aimed at neutralising key figures within India's Hindu community, including judges, activists, and political workers, sources have told CNN-News18. The structure and functioning of PFI resemble that of terrorist organisations, incorporating surveillance-intelligence cells, armed squads, and global funding.
The NIA disclosed these findings in a court submission, indicating that PFI had compiled ' hit lists" targeting 977 individuals in Kerala alone. This information surfaced as the agency opposed the bail plea of two accused – Muhammad Bilal and Riyasudheen – in the Palakkad Sreenivasan murder case. Multiple hit lists were recovered, exposing the alarming scale of the conspiracy, as reported by several sources.
One notable list, recovered from Sirajudheen, a member of PFI's so-called 'Reporter Wing", contained the names of 240 people, including prominent figures across various sectors, posing a substantial threat to public safety. Furthermore, 232 names came from Muhammed Sadik, a PFI insider turned approver, and another 500 were uncovered during a house search of the absconding accused Ayoob TA. Additionally, five individuals, including a former Kerala district judge, were found listed in Abdul Wahab's wallet, another key accused in this conspiracy.
Sources indicate that these lists were prepared for selective assassinations aimed at destabilising communal harmony and polarising society. The targets primarily included members of the RSS, BJP, and other Hindu leaders, such as district-level organisers, temple trustees, and ideologues. The lists also included randomly selected Hindus, community elders, and public officials like district judges who resisted PFI-backed Dawah conversions or legal interference.
At least five RSS leaders in Kerala were granted Y-category security in 2022 after being named in these hit lists. According to the NIA, PFI maintained a three-tier terror framework: the 'Reporter Wing" that tracked targets, created dossiers, and monitored their movements and social profiles; the 'Service Wing" and 'Hit Squads" that recruited low-income radicalised youth trained in the use of knives, swords, and stealth tactics; and the 'Training Cells" located in Aluva (Periyar Valley Campus) and Narath (Kannur), which served as combat and indoctrination hubs.
The thorough investigations of the NIA connected these findings to other murders, including those of Sreenivasan in Palakkad (2022), Sanjith in Kerala (2021), Rudresh in Bengaluru (2016), Praveen Nettaru in Dakshina Kannada (2022), and V. Ramalingam in Tamil Nadu (2019). These killings were often methodical, involving machetes and carried out in daylight to invoke terror.
Both the Delhi High Court and the NIA have cited PFI's 'India Vision 2047" as evidence of a long-term plan to overthrow the Indian Constitution and replace it with Sharia law. Systematically targeting Hindu leadership is seen as crucial to this objective. CNN-News18 had earlier reported that the Enforcement Directorate traced over Rs 120 crores in funds, mostly from Gulf-based hawala networks, and propaganda videos glorifying ISIS, Hamas, and the Taliban have been recovered from PFI's training camps.
Additionally, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), PFI's political front, provided cover by infiltrating local panchayats and municipal bodies while aiding radical operations at the grassroots level. Intelligence records indicate that at least 21 PFI members joined ISIS, further highlighting the complex domestic-international hybrid threat posed by the organisation.
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