Hafiz Saeed, the founder of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the mastermind of the 26/11 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, is serving a 78-year imprisonment sentence in the custody of Pakistan after being convicted in at least seven terror financing cases, the United Nations said in updated information.
Last month, India formally asked Pakistan for the extradition of the UN-proscribed terrorist, who is wanted by Indian probe agencies in several terror cases. However, there exists no bilateral extradition treaty between India and Pakistan. Saeed was arrested in July 2019 by Pakistan's Counter Terrorism Department following 23 FIRs against him and his close associates.
Saeed was designated as a global terrorist by the UN Security Council's 1267 Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee in December 2008. He is "in (the) custody of the Government of Pakistan, serving a 78-year imprisonment sentence since 12 February 2020 as a result of conviction in seven terror financing cases,” the Sanctions Committee said in an amended entry.
Saeed's role in terror attacks
The Saeed-led Jamat-ud Dawah (JuD), a front organisation for the LeT, was responsible for carrying out the 2008 Mumbai attack that killed 166 people, including six Americans. He was given a combined sentence of 33 years imprisonment in April 2022 by an anti-terrorism court in two cases of terror financing.
"The person in question is wanted in numerous cases in India. He is also a UN-proscribed terrorist. In this regard, we have conveyed a request along with relevant supporting documents to the Government of Pakistan to extradite him to India to face trial in a particular case. We have been flagging the issue of activities, that he's been wanted for," said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) ex-spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in December.
The UN Security Council last month enacted amendments to certain entries in its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaeda Sanctions List of individuals and entities subject to the assets freeze, travel ban, and arms embargo. The committee noted that under these amendments, Saeed's deputy and LeT founding member Hafiz Abdul Salem Bhuttavi is "confirmed deceased".
Bhuttavi, an UN-designated terrorist who trained the LeT attackers for the 2008 Mumbai terror attack and acted as the terror outfit’s chief on at least two occasions, died in prison in May last year in Pakistan's Punjab province while serving a sentence for terror financing.
The Sanctions Committee also noted that Maulana Fazlullah, commander of Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), was “confirmed deceased on 13 June 2018.” TTP commander since November 2013, Fazlullah led the local TTP in Pakistan’s northwest valley of Swat from 2007 to 2009.
Why Hafiz Saeed is not extradited till today
It is worth mentioning that India and Pakistan do not have an extradition treaty. However, New Delhi has previously shared detailed dossiers with Islamabad but as of now the neighbouring nation neither co-operated nor extradited the designated terrorists.
Besides, it is crucial to note that the "extradition treaty" should not be confused with the Shimla Agreement. It was signed following the India-Pakistan war in 1971. It was a formal agreement to end the hostilities between the countries. Moreover, both countries also agreed on a comprehensive plan for peaceful relations.
Summing up the accord - it is a set of guiding principles that both countries agreed to follow while managing relations with each other. Both countries agreed to respect each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, and would not interfere in the internal affairs of the other country.
Hafiz's role in upcoming Pakistan elections
Recently, it was reported that the party backed by Hafiz is contesting in the upcoming general elections in Pakistan. According to a report by a Pakistani English daily, Dawn, the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a party considered to be backed by Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, has fielded candidates for each and every national and provincial assembly constituency.
Besides, the Pakistan media report also claimed that Hafiz's son Talha Saeed is also in the run. The media report claimed that Talha is contesting from the National Assembly’s constituency NA-127, Lahore.
(with inputs from PTI)
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