National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested Shafeekh (28), a Popular Front of India (PFI) terrorist mastermind who is the main accused in the murder case of an RSS leader from Kerala. Shafeekh is responsible for the murder of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Pracharak SK Srinivasan, who was brutally killed on 16 April 2022 in Palakkad, Kerala.
The assailants hacked Srinivasan to death inside his second-hand two-wheeler business in Melamuri, right in the middle of Palakkad city. Investigators found out that the terrorists assembled near Palakkad District Hospital Mortuary and conspired to kill Srinivasan. On the day of the incident, the accused arrived on two-wheelers, entered Srinivasan’s shop, hacked him to death using sharp weapons and escaped from the crime scene in broad daylight.
Shafeekh, a native of Malappuram, absconded after the murder and was hiding in Kollam district. An NIA Absconder Tracking Team (ATT) tracked the accused, and he was taken into custody. NIA clarified that Shafeekh was a PFI’ Hit Squad’ member. The Srinivasan murder case was first investigated by a special team of the local police, and later, the NIA took over.
“A total of 71 persons have been identified for their involvement in the horrendous conspiracy, in which NIA has already filed two charge sheets, on 17 March 2023 and 6 November 2023. One of the accused, identified as Abdul Naser, had died on 2 January 2023, while two absconders, Saheer K V and Jaffar Bheemantavida, were arrested, respectively, on 19 October 2023 and 12 February 2024,” an NIA Press Release said.
The NIA arrested Shafeekh on Monday night from a house near Thazhava (a village in Karunagappally taluk) Nursery Mukku, where the terrorist had been hiding since the murder took place. He was produced in a special court by the NIA and remanded. The suspect will be taken into custody and questioned.
Allegedly, Shafeekh secretly led the efforts to kill Srinivasan. Recently, the NIA arrested Saheer KV and Bheemantavide Jaffar, who were absconding with Shafeekh. During interrogation, they revealed details of those who helped them go into hiding. Shafeekh’s hideout was found after following them.
Malayala Manorama reported that investigators said that it was Shafeekh who recruited and protected the PFI Hit Squad, including KP Ashraf, the first accused in the Srinivasan murder case. It was Shafeekh and Ashraf who prepared the list of those who were targeted to be killed. The duo secretly camped near the residences of their victims and passed information to the killers.
Last month, HinduPost reported that Jaffar disclosed that the banned outfit, PFI, orchestrated the attack on Srinivasan and had sinister plans to eliminate several other top RSS karyakartas. According to Jaffar, PFI has designated killer squads for executing such nefarious activities. Jaffar, the ‘Master Trainer’ of PFI, gave weapons training to the accused who were directly involved in the RSS leader’s murder.
Jaffar served as the chief weapon trainer for PFI, and the training sessions were conducted at Green Valley, a sprawling 25-acre institution located near Malappuram. This facility served as a hub for major training sessions, where animals were reportedly subjected to gruesome experiments. Jaffar also revealed to the investigation team that weapons trainers led the killer squads.
The NIA detained Jaffar from his Kannur home after they had previously charged him with participating in anti-national activities. With ties to the PFI’s attempts to create an Islamic State in Bharat since 1947, he is the 59th suspect listed in the preliminary FIR filed by the NIA. As part of PFI’s terror act, Jaffar was also allegedly involved in the infamous hand-chopping incident involving Prof. TJ Joseph on 4 July 2010. During the NIA investigation, his role in providing instruction to PFI’s murder squads around the state came to light.
Recent developments are concerning since they imply that terror centres, similar to the infamous “Green Valley,” where significant training sessions were held, allegedly received implicit backing or favouritism from the Kerala Police. The NIA reportedly gave the Kerala Police orders to step up surveillance and searches on these institutions. It is unclear how these orders were carried out.
