Court denies bail to PFI national leader in anti-national activities case
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Kochi: A special court here has denied bail to Karamana Ashraf Moulavi, national in-charge of the education wing of the banned Popular Front of India and vice president of the All India Imams Council, after the National Investigation Agency opposed his plea, alleging he organised armed training camps and propagated ISIS ideology.
Special NIA Court judge MK Mohandas on Friday dismissed the bail application, observing that there were reasonable grounds to believe the accusations were prima facie true and that the allegations were grave in nature.
Ashraf is the second accused in a case registered in connection with alleged anti-national activities of the PFI, including the murder of RSS leader Sreenivasan in Palakkad.
Opposing bail, the NIA submitted that Ashraf organised arms training programmes conducted by PFI at Periyar Valley in Kochi and at the Trivandrum Educational Services Trust (TEST) in Thiruvananthapuram as preparation for terrorist acts.
Referring to the agency’s submissions, the court order noted that Protected Witness No. 3 stated Ashraf, along with other accused, organised armed training at Periyar Valley through the 15th accused, Muhammad Mubarak. During a search at Mubarak’s residence on December 29, 2022, three swords and an axe were seized. The NIA told the court that an axe was used by PFI cadres in the 2010 hand-chopping case of Professor T.J. Joseph in Kerala, which was investigated by the agency.
The NIA further alleged that Ashraf was part of the conspiracy behind the murder of Sreenivasan. Protected Witness No. 4 stated that he and others conducted arms training for PFI cadres at TEST, Thiruvananthapuram.
The agency also accused Ashraf of delivering speeches promoting ISIS ideology. Protected Witnesses 6 and 7 alleged that he delivered hate speeches and incited cadres to wage jihad against “kafirs”, claims which the NIA said were corroborated by ISIS-related material recovered from his pen drive.
According to the agency, the pen drive seized from his residence contained ISIS-related videos and images, handwritten notes of financial transactions with accused persons in various murder cases involving ISIS, and a list of leaders of the RSS and other Hindu organisations. It allegedly also included notes on storing knives, swords, iron rods and bombs.
Arguing for bail, Ashraf’s counsel submitted that he has been in judicial custody for over three-and-a-half years and contended that his arrest was not carried out in accordance with the law, with the grounds of arrest not properly communicated.
The defence said Ashraf is a senior citizen suffering from multiple health issues and has been hospitalised repeatedly. It further alleged that the NIA suppressed the findings of the state police in the Sreenivasan murder case, claiming the incident stemmed from political retaliation and that the agency wrongly described the deceased as a Hindu leader, though he was an RSS and Bharatiya Janata Party worker.
The defence also challenged the legality of the search, arguing it was not conducted in Ashraf’s presence and that the alleged recovery was invalid. It further contended that the NIA primarily relied on a voice clip purportedly recovered from the mobile phone of the 15th accused to support allegations of an “India 2047” agenda aimed at turning the country into an Islamic nation.
After hearing both sides and examining the records, the court observed that, beyond witness statements, there were materials prima facie indicating Ashraf’s active role in the offences. Noting that the charge sheet has been filed and the case is ready for trial, the court dismissed the bail plea.
The NIA registered the case in 2022 and has filed a charge sheet against 65 accused persons. Of the 56 arrested so far, 50 have been granted bail.
With PTI inputs