The Weekend Leader - ED zeroes in on bank accounts linked to PFI in UP

ED zeroes in on bank accounts linked to PFI in UP

Lucknow

29-January-2020

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has started zeroing in on about 75 bank accounts that have been allegedly used to fund the Popular Front of India (PRI) in Uttar Pradesh, especially during the recent anti-CAA protests.

According to sources, as many as 90 withdrawals were allegedly made from these accounts in a day during the protests against the CAA, as per the bank documents and proof procured by the ED.

"We are focusing on the accounts of PFI members and their sympathizers where withdrawals have been made during the anti-CAA protests. Majority of the withdrawals have been made just before the protests took a violent turn. We are also investigating accounts where large sums of money have been deposited during this period," claims a source in the ED.

The CCTV footage of various banks of days when the money was withdrawn has also been sought to identify the supporters of PFI.

This is the first time that the ED is investigating the financial aspect of the PFI for which the state government has already sought a ban.

The UP police had arrested 25 PFI members, allegedly responsible for the violence during the anti-CAA protests in UP and the arrested persons include the PFI state president Waseem Ahmad.

The PFI, according to UP DGP O.P. Singh, is a reinvented outfit of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

The various agencies of the state police are investigating the presence of PFI units and their supporters in all districts of Uttar Pradesh.

PFI's general secretary Mohammed Ali Jinnah, had issued a statement, two days ago, condemning reports that alleged links between PFI and the anti-CAA protests.

He claimed that the PFI complied with the law of the land and challenged the 'unnamed sources' of Enforcement Directorate (ED) to prove their allegations.

Explaining the money transfer from PFI accounts to prominent lawyers, he claimed that the payment was related to the 2017 Hadiya Case and not funding for the 2019 CAA protest.

The UP police has mainly blamed the PFI for the violence that erupted in the state during the protest against the CAA.

On December 31, DGP Singh formally wrote to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking a ban on the PFI.

UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath too has challenged the Congress, SP, and BSP in a recent rally, to reveal their connection with SIMI and PFI and has underlined PFI's support to 'anti-social' elements.IANS 



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