Karnataka Forum for Dignity: Walking the SIMI way?

The Karnataka Forum for Dignity is a disaster waiting to happen. Investigation agencies are burning the midnight's oil, trying to dig up intel on the outfit, which is alleged to have links with the Students Islamic Movement of India and Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence.

Intelligence Bureau sources told rediff.com that they have picked up lot of activity involving the organisation and want to curb it before it goes political. Police say it is one of the fastest growing outfits in South India with nearly 40,000 members.

A couple of months ago the probe against the members of this organisation was on in full swing. Today, the Bengaluru Police and the IB are finding it difficult to track down the outfit's mastermind, Naved Ahmed.

According to the investigation records, Ahmed is a habitual offender and specialises in robbery and kidnapping. The money collected funds the organisation.

An interpol red corner alert has also been issued in his name.

The bigger concern is the growing number of the outfit's members.

The formation is very much on the lines of the Indian Mujahideen or the SIMI after the ban. While the IM and the SIMI targeted the educated youth, the KFD has members from a very low rung of the society.

The police say that an outfit such as the KFD should not be viewed only as a Karnataka problem, but over the days it can grow to become a menace for Southern India.

The police are studying the links the outfit has with some political groups in Kerala. There are traces of this organisation in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu as well. In Karnataka, the police have found this organisation to be strongest in Mangalore, Mysore and Bengaluru.

Investigations have shown that the primary agenda of the outfit is to grow politically.

"We want to ensure that this outfit does not grow any more and the rate at which they continue with their activity is causing a nightmare for the police. The ideology adopted by this outfit shows very clearly that they are hitting on emotive points to further their cause. It may not be as polished as the SIMI or the IM, but a crime is a crime," a police official said.

Today, according to investigators, KFD shows traces of affiliations with some terror groups in India.

"It is a typical case of what happened with the SIMI and how the ISI used it to become a primary striking force in India. The same is happening to the KFD and before they make inroads politically, we need to shut it down," the official added