For alleged terror links, 18 Kerala journalists under radar of NIA

For many years, the NIA has under its radar policemen, advocates and journalists from Kerala for their suspected links with terror groups

New Delhi, Feb 01: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has questioned six journalists from Kerala for alleged links with terror groups..

A team of the NIA from Hyderabad reached Kochi and questioned these journalists. Sources tell OneIndia that these journalists along with twelve others have been on the radar of the agency for long.

During the questioning, the NIA is learnt to have collected evidence from their phones.

Sources said that these journalists were in close contact with terror groups. At first the journalists were not cooperative with the officials, but they're changed track after being shown evidence about their alleged involvement with terror groups, the source also said.

It is also learnt that these journalists had reached the agency's office wearing the badges given to them by their employers

The NIA which has been investigating cases against the now banned Popular Front of India (PFI) is closely monitoring many journalists, advocates and some within the police force. The NIA suspects that these persons could be tipping off some of the PFI operatives who have gone underground following the ban on the outfit in September 2022.

The questioning of the journalists is another important aspect in the probe against the PFI. Recently the NIA had unearthed a reporters' network of the PFI, following the arrest of one Mohammad Sadik. The NIA in a note had said that the likes of Sadik were hired as reporters by the PFI. They were tasked with collecting information on non-Muslim leaders and then passing on the same to the hit-squad.

The job of the hit-squad is to carry out the orders of the PFI's Islamic Courts and go about killing the leaders that the reporter network had collected information on.

The NIA had also arrested an advocate, Mohammed Mubarak. The NIA said post his arrest that Mubarak was a practising advocate in the Kerala High Court and was also part of the hit-squad of the PFI.

In another development, the NIA also has under its radar some policemen in Kerala. A report had come out last year stating that scores of policemen are under the radar of the NIA for their alleged links with the PFI. However the Kerala Police denied the report.