India: Muslim Group PFI Disbands After Government Ban

Facts

• On Wednesday, the Popular Front of India (PFI) announced its dissolution, accepting the government's five-year ban imposed under the 1967 Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
• The Muslim group and its affiliates are accused of involvement in "serious" offenses, "including terrorism and its financing," with India's home ministry claiming to have found evidence of PFI ties with the so-called Islamic State (IS).
• The ban comes after more than 270 people allegedly linked to the PFI were reportedly detained this month during raids carried out across the country by the National Investigation Agency — India's top anti-terror agency — and the anti-financial crimes Enforcement Directorate.
• The group was formed in 2006 following the merging of the controversial National Development Front (NDF) with other organizations. It claims to be an NGO acting in more than 20 states to help the poor and counter oppression.
• The PFI has reportedly backed movements such as protests against a 2019 citizenship law considered discriminatory against Muslims and demonstrations demanding the right of Muslim women students to wear the hijab in class.
• Muslims represent roughly one-sixth of India's 1.4B population, and tensions between them and the country's Hindu majority have been rising over the past years, with some critics blaming PM Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist agenda.

Sources: Times Of India, Al Jazeera, Indian Express, BBC News, Reuters, and Washington Post.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Economic Times. It’s about time the government took action to prevent the PFI from operating freely because of its long involvement in terror and anti-social activities, including inciting the youth, disturbing public order, and confronting constitutional institutions. This ban stresses to all anti-national groups that they won't be tolerated in India.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Dawn. Once again, the government has breached the basic principles of the constitution, attacking democracy and civil rights by cracking down on freedoms of speech, protest, and association. This ban has nothing to do with terrorism and has everything to do with Modi’s discrimination against Muslims.