The Popular Front of India (PFI) was the greatest threat to the unity and integrity of the country, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) told a Delhi court Saturday while concluding the arguments on charges in the PFI leadership case.
This case pertains to the conspiracy allegedly hatched by the PFI leadership to “radicalise Muslim youth” and to “promote enmity against Hindus”.
“We have evidence against the organisation… a protected witness told us that PFI taught in classes that in case India goes to war with Pakistan, ‘the focus would be on north’ and at that time, they would attack from the South and ‘capture Southern India’,” said NIA’s Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Rahul Tyagi before NIA Judge Prashant Sharma of Patiala House Court.
“The PFI were inciting enmity and hatred against Hindus by spreading propaganda that Islam was in danger in India…they identified Muslim youths gullible to such propaganda and radicalised them for ‘participating in Jihad’,” he added.
“The PFI incited its members to join ISIS and to establish Caliphate and Sharia law in India… They were imparting lectures to create a divide between Hindus and Muslims. The propaganda that was played out was that India was Islamic under the Mughals, but following their fall, the status of Muslims had deteriorated,” said SPP Tyagi.
The prosecutor, who was accompanied by advocates Jatin, Amit Rohilla and Shubham Goyal, also read out various statements of protected witnesses, which were used to build up the case.
“Gujarat riots and Babri Masjid demolition were discussed with others by a PFI member. He explained the ‘golden days’ of Islamic rule… these are the statements of a protected witness,” the SPP said.
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“The members recruited by the PFI were asked to provide a monthly sum as ‘Baitulmaal’ which was coincidentally levied for the first time by the First Caliph of the Islamic world… members were motivated to join ISIS in Syria and to learn the methods of fighting,” the SPP said.
According to the MHA, there have been multiple recoveries from PFI members over the years, including documents on how to make IEDs and documents containing material on converting India into an Islamic state besides hand-held marine radio sets, pen drives with pro-IS videos, ammunition, and weapons.
In this case, there are a total of 20 accused persons along with PFI. On the next date of hearing, the accused persons are likely to argue on charge. A chargesheet was filed in the case in March 2023. The trial is likely to begin in the case once arguments on charge from both sides conclude.
Over 1,300 criminal cases have been registered against PFI members across the country by law enforcement agencies related to offences linked to the killing of leaders associated with Hindu organisations, organising suspected terror camps, alleged radicalisation of youth and links with foreign terrorist organisations such as the Islamic State.
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In September 2022, The Ministry of Home Affairs had published a gazette notification declaring the organisation and its associates unlawful. During the same time, the NIA and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out massive nationwide search, detention, and arrest operations.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.
Professional Background
Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.
Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.
Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.
Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.
Recent notable articles
In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.
1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.
2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.
3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.
Signature Style
Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.
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