How Islamic State is looking to fill in the PFI’s space in India

The Islamic State has off late through its mouthpiece the Voice of Khorasan has been portraying that a crackdown on the PFI is an attack on Indian Muslims.

The Islamic State has been making all attempts to grab the space left behind following the ban on the Popular Front of India.

The recent raids by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) clearly suggested that the PFI had larger plans. In fact it was also looking to use the sea route.

During the raids the NIA officials recovered GPS-enabled wireless communication devices and marine radio sets from the PFI leaders in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. These devices according to preliminary investigations may have been used by the PFI to orchestrate terror on the seas and also indulge in money exchange.

The kind of documentation and material that the NIA has seized only indicate the reach of the PFI and how deep the outfit had penetrated into the system.

When the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) banned the PFI, it had said that the outfit shared close links with the Islamic State. The order also read that many from the PFI had joined the Islamic State.

The Islamic State which which is known as the Islamic State Khorasan Province in this region has off late been praising the PFI. It has called out the ban and even urged members of the outfit to join the Islamic State.

The Islamic State has had large plans for India and that is a well-known fact. When it rose in 2014, it had drawn out a map of how it plans on establishing a Caliphate across the world. The map had parts of Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir in it, and this showed the intent of the Islamic State.

While the PFI follows an identical ideology of the Islamic State, the two entities have remained separate. The Islamic State has through its mouthpiece, 'Voice of Khorasan' has off late sung a lot of praise for the PFI.

An Intelligence Bureau official explains to OneIndia that while the Islamic State has managed to put its ideology right out there, it has failed to gain space on the ground. It is in this context that it would look to use the PFI's ground network and build as a terror group in the country.

In this context the constant raids by the NIA become important. The NIA which had gone after the overground network of the PFI in the first phase is now targeting the underground base of the outfit. The underground network is even more lethal and hence it is important to shut it down, the official also explains.

There are two things that the agencies are keeping in mind while dealing with the issue. One is ensuring that the PFI does not bounce back as an underground outfit. Second is to ensure that the Islamic State does not take that space with the leftovers in the PFI.

If one looks at a recent article by the Islamic State titled, 'Crackdown on Popular Front of India: Lessons for Indian Muslim,' the message is clear. The article intends to play the victim card for the Indian Muslims and the operatives of the PFI. It takes the larger narrative that under the garb of cracking down on the PFI, the Indian agencies are targeting Muslims.

In doing so, the Islamic State is inviting the members of the PFI and other Indian Muslims into its fold, so that it can build its ground network in the country.