Hafiz Saeed’s detention request withdrawn by Pakistan government
On January 31, Saeed and his four aides were detained by the Punjab government for 90 days under preventative detention under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.
A request to extend the detention of Lashkar-e-Tayiba chief and Mumbai 26/11 mastermind hafiz Saeed was withdrawn by the Pakistan government.
On
January
31,
Saeed
and
his
four
aides
were
detained
by
the
Punjab
government
for
90
days
under
preventative
detention
under
the
Anti-Terrorism
Act
1997.
They
have
been
under
house
arrest
since
then.
An
official
of
the
Home
Department
of
Punjab
government
told
a
three-member
federal
judicial
review
board
headed
by
Justice
Ejaz
Afzal
Khan
of
the
Supreme
Court
that
the
government
did
not
require
the
extension
of
Saeed
and
his
four
accomplices' detention
anymore.
"The provincial government does not require an extension to the detention of Saeed, his aides - Abdullah Ubaid, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdul Rehman Abid and Qazi Kashif Hussain - under the anti-terrorism law. Therefore it requests the board to accept the withdrawal of extension to the detention of Jamaat-u-Dawah leaders," he said.
The board accepted the government's plea and disposed of the matter. Explaining as to why the government withdrew its application, a senior official of the Punjab government told PTI that since the government has extended the detention of Saeed and four others till October 24 under the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance 1960 it does not require to have them house arrested under the anti-terrorism law.
He said the government was to produce Saeed and others before the review board for their detention under 11 EEE (I) and 11D of Anti-Terrorism Act 1997. "But since all five of them are detained under the public order there was no binding on the government to produce them before the review board today to seek an extension to their detention," the official said.
The Punjab Home Department issued an order extending the house arrest of Jamat-d-Dawah chief Hafiz Saeed and four other JuD men for another 30 days with effect from September 25 under the public order. The previous detention order issued on July 28 was expired on September 25. The last two extensions were made on the 'public order'.
OneIndia News