The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested MK Faizy, the national president of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for alleged financial connections with the Popular Front of India (PFI), which is banned in the country. He was taken into custody at Delhi airport and later brought before the Patiala House Court, where Special Judge Chander Jit Singh approved a six-day custody for the ED.

Faizy is set to appear before the court again on Monday after his remand course concludes. The court instructed ED officials to ensure his medical needs were met and to accommodate his observance of Ramzan if he chose to do so. It also allowed his legal counsel a 15-minute meeting with him during custody. Initially, the ED had requested a 10-day remand, stating that Faizy needed to be interrogated about alleged illegal fund transfers, financial transactions, and the money trail related to the case.

Special Public Prosecutors Simon Benjamin and Naveen Kumar Matta, representing the ED, argued that Faizy had extended connections with the PFI, having been an associate since its inception before founding SDPI in 2009.

Faizy was arrested by ED officials at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport while travelling from Kochi. The agency alleges that SDPI was a political front for PFI, and funds worth crores were routed to it through unknown channels.

Officials maintained that Faizy’s custodial interrogation was required to confront him with documentary evidence and three key assertions about the case. However, his legal team, led by Advocates Satyakam and Saipan Dastgir Shaikh, contested the ED’s request, claiming that he had already been going through a questioning session for three long days and that all evidence against him was based on documents.

Faizy's counsel argued, "If all that remains is recording his statement, that can be done even in judicial custody." The defence also highlighted that the alleged fund transfers occurred between 2017 and 2019 before PFI was banned in September 2022. This situation creates doubts about how these transactions could be considered criminal proceedings.

In addition, the lawyers dismissed allegations of foreign funding, asserting, “SDPI has no financial links with PFI, nor does it receive funds from abroad.” However, ED prosecutor Matta countered that Faizy had repeatedly avoided questioning despite being called 12 times.