News Brief
ED Arrests SDPI President M K Faizy In Money Laundering Probe Linked To Banned PFI
ED
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Moideen K Faizy, the national president of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), in connection with an ongoing money laundering investigation related to the banned Popular Front of India (PFI), Indian Express reported.
Faizy, also known as Moideen Kutty K, was taken into custody on 3 March from IGI Airport, Delhi.
“Moideen Kutty K alias M K Faizy was arrested on 3 March from the IGI airport. SDPI is a political front of PFI and Faizy is National President of SDPI since 2018. He was produced at the Patiala House Court and was sent to six-days custody,” an ED spokesperson was quoted as saying in the IE report.
The SDPI, founded in 2009 and headquartered in Delhi, is alleged to be the political front of the PFI, which was outlawed by the Union government in September 2022 over alleged involvement in unlawful activities.
“Faizy was summoned by the ED multiple times and was given as many as 12 opportunities, but he didn’t appear and evaded the investigation. A complaint was filed on 28 March, 2024, by ED against Faizy before the concerned court for his non-appearance and a Bailable Warrant (BW) vide order dated 17 December last year against him. Subsequently, upon non-execution of BW, a Non-Bailable Warrant (NBW) was issued vide order dated 17 January against him and the same also could not be executed despite best possible efforts made to trace the whereabouts of him,” the spokesperson added.
The money laundering case against PFI and its affiliates originated from FIRs lodged by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2013.
Till now, the ED has attached movable and immovable assets worth Rs 61.72 crore in the case, and nine prosecution complaints have been filed against the accused. A total of 26 PFI members have already been arrested.
During a search operation conducted on 3 December 2020, authorities recovered substantial incriminating evidence, including documents and digital records, which, according to the ED, indicate that PFI exercised financial and administrative control over SDPI.
The ED alleged, “During search proceedings conducted on 3 December 2020, at various locations belonging to PFI and its office bearers, numerous incriminating documents and digital evidence were recovered and seized, that establishes that PFI used to control, fund and supervise the activities of SDPI; that SDPI is a front of PFI having common members/cadres and leaders; that SDPI was dependent on PFI for its day-to-day functions, policy making… other related activities.”
One of the key findings was a letter addressed to Faizy, recovered from Unity House in Kozhikode, Kerala—PFI’s state headquarters. The letter detailed “procedures of selecting candidates” for state assembly and parliamentary elections.
Additionally, a seized diary reportedly contained minutes from PFI’s State Executive Committee (SEC) meeting on 16 March 2019, which, as per ED’s claim, revealed that PFI provided Rs 3.75 crore to SDPI for election related activities.
