Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, is set to be released from house arrest tomorrow.
The Lahore High Court today ordered the release of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, who has been under house arrest since January this year.
The Punjab government had asked for an extension to Saeed’s detention but the request was turned down by the court.
A provincial law officer had told the Lahore High Court during the last hearing that a provincial review board would review Saeed’s detention.
The JuD chief, through his lawyer A K Dogar, had challenged his detention orders, submitting that the requirements laid by the Supreme Court for the purpose were not fulfilled. He requested the court to set aside the detention and order his release.
Hafiz Saeed and his four aides–Abdullah Ubaid, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdul Rehman Abid and Qazi Kashif Hussain–were detained by the Punjab government for 90 days under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 and the Fourth Schedule of Anti- Terrorism Act 1997 on January 31.
On September 25, the house arrest of Saeed and others was extended for another 30 days by the Punjab government.
The Lahore High Court (LHC), which heard a plea against Saeed’s detention on October 10, said he will be freed if the Pakistan government fails to submit evidence against him. Hafiz Saeed’s four aides were set free in the last week of October.
The United States has offered a USD 10 million bounty for the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks mastermind.
The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
