New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed Prosecution Complaint against five office bearers / members of the Popular Front of India (PFI) and its student wing Campus Front of India (CFI) under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) before the Hon’ble Special PMLA Court, Lucknow. Cognizance of the offence under PMLA has been taken by the Hon’ble Trial Court.
Atikur Rahman, National Treasurer of CFI; Masud Ahmed, Delhi General Secretary of CFI; Sidhique Kappan, a journalist associated with PFI and Md. Alam, a CFI/PFI member, were arrested by the UP Police at Mathura while they were on their way to Hathras to disturb communal harmony, to incite violence and to spread terror. Within the ambit of ongoing ED investigations against PFI and its related organisations, ED initiated investigation in this matter on the basis of FIR no. 199/2020 registered by UP Police in which scheduled offences under section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections 17 & 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act were invoked.
PMLA investigation conducted by ED revealed that the visit of these PFI/CFI members was under the instructions of K. A. Rauf Sherif, the National General Secretary of CFI and a member of PFI, and funds for the same were also provided by K. A. Rauf Sherif. He was arrested by ED on 12.12.2020 while he was trying to flee from the country.
ED investigation has established that K. A. Rauf Sherif entered into a criminal conspiracy with PFI members stationed in Gulf countries to fraudulently transfer money raised/collected abroad by PFI in the guise of payments related to business transactions. The money was laundered through different layers and eventually reached K. A. Rauf Sherif and his associates belonging to PFI and CFI.
This ‘proceeds of crime’ amounting to around Rs. 1.36 Crore was obtained as a result of criminal activity relating to the offence of criminal conspiracy under section 120-B of IPC and part of it was used by PFI/CFI office bearers/members/activists in India for their continuous unlawful activities over time which included, but were not limited to, funding of anti-CAA protests, inciting violence and fomenting trouble which led to Delhi riots in the month of February 2020; and in respect to the more specific incident investigated in this Prosecution Complaint, which was the purported visit of PFI/CFI to Hathras with an intent to disturb communal harmony, incite communal riots and spread terror. Part of the ‘proceeds of crime’ was projected as untainted money and was used for the purchase of land and was thus parked to enable its future use by PFI/CFI.
Further, it is revealed that more than Rs. 100 Crore have been deposited in the accounts of PFI over the years, and that a very large part of the same has been deposited in cash. The source and disbursal of these funds is under investigation. PFI has been continuously indulging in various scheduled offences under PMLA ever since the Narath arms training case of 2013 investigated by the NIA in which members of PFI/SDPI were convicted of “organising a terrorist camp and entering into criminal conspiracy to impart training to the youth in use of explosives and weapons, with an intention to prepare them for terrorist activities”. Involvement of PFI and its related organisations in the commission of such scheduled offences and the money transfers and cash deposits have significantly increased since the said incident in 2013. Further, investigation has revealed that PFI has been involved in anti-CAA protests and several PFI members/activists were also arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with their investigation in the said Delhi riots case. For instance, Md. Danish, a PFI member was arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with investigations in FIR no. 59/2020. ED is separately investigating money laundering in the Delhi riots of February 2020.
Funds from abroad channeled to India via hawala channels
Search operations conducted at the offices of PFI led to the seizure of incriminating documentary evidence which revealed that PFI has been collecting huge amounts of funds abroad through PFI members/activists specifically appointed for this purpose and that targets for foreign collection of funds have also been fixed. These funds have been remitted to India through hawala / underground channels and through remittances sent to the accounts of members/activists/office bearers of PFI and related organisations and also to their family members and associates. Further, statutory compliance for collection of funds abroad and their remittance to India have not been done by PFI and its related organisations like Rehab India Foundation (which received around Rs. 50 lakh as foreign contribution from abroad) as they are not registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 1976.
In relation to the ongoing investigation against PFI and its related organisations, this is the first Prosecution Complaint which has been filed by the ED. Investigation regarding the money laundering activities of PFI and its related organisations and the use of such funds in various unlawful activities is in progress and Supplementary Prosecution Complaints shall be filed in future.
