Pak Govt. bans JuD, Jaish and Lashkar

Islamabad, Aug.5 (ANI): In a major development, the Government of Pakistan on Wednesday banned 25 religious and other organisations, including the Jamaat-ud-Dawah, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashker-e-Toiba.

India has been demanding action for a long time against the JuD, LeT and JeM, which it blames for carrying out several attacks on Indian soil, including the Mumbai attacks and the 2001 assault on the Indian Parliament.

The Pakistani Government has linked a majority of the outlawed groups to terrorist attacks and suicide bombings in Pakistan.

While presenting a list of the banned organisations in the National Assembly, the lower house of Pakistani Parliament, the Interior ministry stated that the Sunni Tehrik had been put on a watch list.

The list of organisations included in the list of outlawed groups

Jammat-ud-Dawah (JuD), Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), JeM, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariah Muahammadi, Al-Akhtar Trust, Al-Rasheed Trust, Tehreek-e-Islami, Islamic Students Movement, Khair-un-Nisa International Trust, Islami Tehreek-e-Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Islam, Balochistan Liberation Army, Jamiat-un-Nisar, Khadam Islam and Millat-e-Islamia Pakistan.

Pakistan banned the JuD after the UN Security Council declared it a front for the LeT in December last year. The LeT and JeM were banned by the country in 2002.

"The list was submitted in a reply to a question raised in the Lower House regarding the banned organisations. The Ministry of Interior presented the whole list of banned organisations that have been retricted from activities from time to time. This is a whole list and contains the recent ones as well which have been banned by the present government for some evidence of them having been involved in anti-state activities," a CNN-IBN news channel report quoted Hasan as saying on Wednesday over the revelation by the Government of Pakistan on ban on various organisations.

Recently, the Government of India has expressed serious concern over the released of Jamaat-ud-Dawah Hafiz Saeed's release by a Pakistani court, who is wanted by India as he is alleged to be the mastermind behind 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

Hasan defended that it was not a deliberate action by the Pak government.

"Well. I am sure that you know that he (Hafiz Saeed) was released by the Supreme Court (of Pakistan) and rather the High Court of Lahore. There was no evidence produced against him and all the evidence produced was against the organisations. He is no longer the chief of the banned organisations. You cannot restrict a man released by a court." (ANI)