Who is Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai? (file photo)
Digital Desk, New Delhi. An order has been issued to confiscate the property of Ghulam Nabi Fai, born in Kashmir and living in America. This order has been given by a special NIA court of Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir in a case registered under UAPA.
Actually, Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai is currently living in America and there are serious allegations against him of being involved in anti-India activities. He had already been declared a proclaimed offender under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) by the special judge of the NIA court in Budgam.
Who is Ghulam Nabi Fai?
Let us tell you that Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai is an American citizen of Kashmiri origin and Jamaat-e-Islami activist. He founded an organization called Kashmiri American Council in the US and lobbied on behalf of Kashmiri separatist groups and the Pakistan government. In 2011, the US government said it was a front group of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
According to the court, Ghulam Nabi Fai is the head of Washington-based Kashmiri American Council. Investigative agencies consider this organization as a Pakistan-backed organization. Nabi has been booked under several sections of the UAPA, including Section 10 (association with an unlawful organisation), Section 13 (supporting unlawful activities) and Section 39 (supporting terrorist organisations). The court has declared him a fugitive in the year 2020 itself.
These properties will be confiscated
In April, the special NIA judge said in his order that under the proclamation order issued in April 2025, the accused was directed to appear before the investigating officer within 30 days, but he deliberately did not do so. After this, the court has now ordered the Deputy Commissioner of Budgam to attach the immovable property of Dr. Fai. The properties to be attached include 1 kanal 2 marla land located at Wadwan village and 11 marla land located at Chattabug village.
Fai used to go to Pakistan
Before his arrest by the FBI in July 2011, Ghulam Nabi Fai had been visiting Pakistan and meeting top political, government and military officials, including the ISI. Fai's influence extended to mid-level officials of the US State Department and some senators. She also had ties to US attorney and lobbyist Paul Manafort.
After gaining US citizenship in 1990, Fai gave up his Indian citizenship. Since then, he has been refused a visa to India due to his links with the Pakistani Army and ISI.
For more than three decades, Ghulam Nabi Fai has been a leading international lobbyist on the Kashmir issue. Recently, a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Jammu and Kashmir ordered seizure of property in Budgam. Fai is accused of working as a proxy for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Fai, born in Budgam, has been living in America for more than three decades and holds American citizenship. She led the Kashmiri American Council (KAC), an anti-India platform that bills itself as an independent civil society platform.
Indian agencies have long accused him of working as a medium for Pakistan's intelligence agency. In the ongoing NIA case, Fai has been accused of supporting terrorist organizations in Jammu and Kashmir under the UAPA, with investigators citing his links to the banned Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir and his closeness to Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin.
Fai's international reputation took a major blow when he was arrested by the FBI in 2011. US prosecutors later established that for more than two decades, KAC was acting as a front for Pakistan's ISI, and that Fai was funneling at least $3.5 million to influence US lawmakers and policymakers on the Kashmir issue.
In 2012, a US federal court sentenced Fai to two years in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy and tax violations. US Attorney Neil McBride told the court that Fai had lied to the Justice Department, the Internal Revenue Service (the US tax agency), and political leaders, and for years had falsely claimed to have a doctorate degree from Temple University in Philadelphia to enhance his credibility.
The court had declared him a fugitive
What is said in the court order: The NIA case against Fai was registered in India in 2020. Despite repeated summons, Fai did not appear before the Indian authorities. In April this year, the special NIA court in Budgam issued a 30-day notice to him directing him to appear before the police. When Fai did not respond to the notice, the court formally declared him a "proclaimed fugitive".
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