A sting operation by India Today TV that exposed the fundamentalist organisation Popular Front of India's foul proselytisation tactics and designs to turn the country into an Islamic state has created ripples in Kerala.

The chief minister's office, which was the first to step in, called for a detailed copy of the findings.

Following this, state police chief Loknath Behera directed top officials to probe the allegations. The department has confirmed that six people who are currently in ISIS camp have clear PFI connections.

INDIA TODAY'S STING REPORT

On Tuesday, India Today TV aired the explosive sting report which laid bare a nexus between Islamic extremist groups and Popular Front of India.

Ahmed Shareef, a senior PFI leader and associate editor of group mouthpiece Gulf Thejas was the first to be caught on camera.

He claimed before undercover reporters that a key aim of PFI was to create an Islamic state in India and later spread it to the rest of the world.

He also revealed the modus operandi of illegal fund transactions from the Gulf to Kerala. Shareef said that Sathya Sarani in Malappuram, which is considered an Islamic education institution, received a lot of money through hawala.

AS Zainaba, president of the AFI's women's wing, said on hidden camera Sathya Sarani is a conversion factory masquerading as an educational organisation.

Hours after the India Today TV report , Kerala police released the names and photographs of half a dozen youngsters from the state who are currently with ISIS in Syria.

The six, including a woman, have been identified as Abdul Ghayoom, Abdul Manaf, Shabeer, Safwan, Suhail and his wife Rizwana, all hailing from Kannur district.

All the men were active PFI workers in Kannur.

ISIS MODULE BUSTED

The police gathered the evidence from an ISIS module busted in Kannur last week. The team included three people who were deported from Turkey after they were caught trying to sneak into Syria.

Two others were Islamic State handlers in Kerala. Hamsa from Thalasserry was believed to be the kingpin of ISIS recruitment from the state. He had been on the radar of the state police for quite some time.

Cops also say that Hamsa was in touch with some PFI leaders in the state. Further investigation about this module led to the discovery that many people who went missing from Kerala and are believed to have joined ISIS have received help from PFI. Some of them travelled abroad with fake passports.

The state police have been tracking the movement of suspected ISIS sympathisers for over a year. Though the state government is yet to give an official response on the sting, sources say chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has taken up the issue seriously.

According to the police sources, 22 people who went missing from Kerala have joined ISIS so far. Five of them have been confirmed dead by their families and cops.

Though the NIA has taken up the investigation in these cases, state police have been carrying out a parallel probe and are keeping a close eye on over 50 people who are suspected ISIS sympathisers.

WATCH | Operation Conversion Factory: Kerala Islamic NGO behind conversion racket?