An Anti-Terror Court in Pakistan’s Lahore on Friday convicted Jamaat-ud-Dawa Chief and Lashkar-E-Taiba Co-Founder Hafiz Saeed in illegal funding cases.
In a key development, an Anti-Terror Court in Pakistan’s Lahore on Friday convicted 26/11 Mastermind and Lashkar-E-Taiba Co-Founder Hafiz Saeed in two separate illegal funding cases. Post-conviction in two cases, Saeed has been sentenced to 31 years of rigorous imprisonment. In addition, the UN blacklisted terrorist has been directed to pay a fine of Rs 3.4 lakh.
“Also, the properties of Saeed, including the Madarsas under his name are to be seized, the bench headed by Justice Ejaz Attar. It is pertinent to mention here that the Jamaat-ud-Dawa Chief and Lashkar E Toiba Co-Founder had a key role to play in the 26/11 terror attack that rocked India in 2008.
Hafiz Saeed gets 31 years in jail
Republic’s Consulting Editor, Retired Major Gaurav Arya soon after the pronouncement of the verdict elaborated on why such an action may have been taken against Hafiz Saeed. “There are three reasons why it has happened. First, it is the FATF pressure. Number 2, if you see General Kamar Javed Bajwa’s statement- for the past 3 years in the Islamabad Security dialogues, he has been saying that there is a need for geoeconomics and the need to reach out to India because they know for a fact that the economic progress in Pakistan cannot go forward without India’s support and unless they stop terrorism in Kashmir and bring all these people whether its Hafis Saeed or Masood Azhar or Syed Salahuddin there can be no peace with India, Retired Major Gaurav Arya said.
