Islamabad: In a veiled reference to India’s intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Pakistani authorities responsible for countering terrorism have asked the home department of the Punjab province to beef up security for the detained mastermind of Mumbai terror attacks Hafiz Saeed, claiming that a plan was hatched by a “foreign spy agency” to kill him through members of a banned militant outfit.
According to official sources, the National Counter Terrorism Authority (NCTA), Pakistan’s internal counter-terrorism authority, has sent a letter to Lahore-based home department of Punjab, claiming that a “foreign spy agency” had paid Rs 80 million to two activists of a proscribed militant group to kill Saeed. NCTA was formed in 2009 and has been mandated to devise a counter-terrorism strategy to address short, medium and long-term goals for security challenges faced by Pakistan besides plans for their implementation.
4 of his aides walk free
Four aides of Saeed, who had been detained along with the JuD chief since January, have been released. Abdullah Ubaid, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdul Rehman Abid and Qazi Kashif Hussain walked free as the judicial review board refused to extend their detention. Incidentally, David Headley, the Pakistani-American Lashkar terrorist, had identified one Major Abdul Rahman as one of the three ISI officers who handled the Mumbai attackers. He identified the other two as Major Ali and Major Iqbal. However, Pakistan did not acknowledge the existence of Major Abdul Rahman or the other two.
Security upped around Saeed’s residence
NCTA asked the home department to ensure strict security measures in the surroundings of Saeed’s Lahore residence, which has been declared a prison for him by the Punjab’s government. Saeed was put under house arrest earlier this year. His banned outfit Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), a front for terror organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), had launched the Milli Muslim League this year in August, but the Election Commission of Pakistan had rejected to register it as a political party.
In 2012, the US had announced a $10 million bounty for information leading to Saeed’s arrest and conviction. Following his arrest, the JuD had started its activities under the banner of Tehreek-e-Azadi Jammu & Kashmir, but last July it was also declared a banned outfit and was added to the list of proscribed organisations by the home ministry.
