The government of Punjab has withdrawn a request seeking an extension to the house arrest of banned Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed and four of his associates under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

The five will, however, continue to be kept under house arrest; but under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance (MPO).

Justice Ejaz Afzal of the Supreme Court chaired the session of Federal Review Board, which was hearing the request, at the SC's Lahore registry on Saturday. A section officer of Punjab's Home Ministry informed the board that the government had not extended a notification issued for the house arrest of Hafiz Saeed under the Anti-Terrorism Act and it wants to withdraw the application. In response, the board disposed of the application.

The provincial government had applied to extend the house arrest for the fifth time. Saeed is supposed to remain under house arrest till the end of this month under the existing order.

Saeed and his fellows have already challenged their house arrest under MPO in the Lahore High Court (LHC).

On January 31, provincial authorities had issued orders to place Saeed under house arrest and the JuD chief had subsequently been detained under Section 11-EEE(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1977.

Saeed has been accused by the United States and India of masterminding the 2008 attacks on the Indian financial capital Mumbai that killed 166 people. He, however, has repeatedly denied involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

In 2012, the United States announced a bounty of $10 million on Hafiz Saeed for his alleged role in the attack, in which six American citizens were also killed.

Opinion

Editorial

Military convictions
Updated 22 Dec, 2024

Military convictions

Pakistan’s democracy, still finding its feet, cannot afford such compromises on core democratic values.
Need for talks
22 Dec, 2024

Need for talks

FOR a long time now, the country has been in the grip of relentless political uncertainty, featuring the...
Vulnerable vaccinators
22 Dec, 2024

Vulnerable vaccinators

THE campaign to eradicate polio from Pakistan cannot succeed unless the safety of vaccinators and security personnel...
Strange claim
Updated 21 Dec, 2024

Strange claim

In all likelihood, Pakistan and US will continue to be ‘frenemies'.
Media strangulation
Updated 21 Dec, 2024

Media strangulation

Administration must decide whether it wishes to be remembered as an enabler or an executioner of press freedom.
Israeli rampage
21 Dec, 2024

Israeli rampage

ALONG with the genocide in Gaza, Israel has embarked on a regional rampage, attacking Arab and Muslim states with...