New Delhi, Feb 22 (IANS): The Delhi High Court on Tuesday issued notice to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on a plea file by the chairman of the Popular Front of India (PFI), O.M.A. Salam, urging the agency to not file a final report under Section 173 (report of police officer on completion of an investigation) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

Justice Jasmeet Singh issued the notice to NIA and directed the agency to file a reply within four weeks.

The matter has been listed for next hearing on July 11.

The lawyer representing Salam stated that as there is a mandatory requirement of permission from the Central government, the NIA can only investigate scheduled offences, including offences under Section 6(5) of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, in the present case.

The lawyer added that the NIA may directly investigate the case but the agency cannot register the offence that is in contradiction to Section 6(8), as per section 6(5) regardless of sub-sections 1 to 4.

In September last year, the NIA and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had carried out nationwide raids against terror-funding suspects. PFI Chairman Salam and 100 other PFI activists were arrested during the raids.

The other arrested persons included PFI co-founder P. Koya, also an erstwhile member of the banned Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), and former PFI chairman E. Abubacker.