BJP slams Hafiz Saeed over 'Lakhvi is innocent' remark

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday lashed out at Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed over his remark that Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi is innocent, saying his certificate confirms that the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) leader is the mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said the certificate given by Saeed to his fellow terrorist sounds rather immaturis and very intriguing.

"Hafiz Saeed is himself among the dreaded terrorist that the world has already notified. And his clean certificate to Lakhvi, who was the real mastermind behind the 26/11 terror attacks, I think shows the connection and the extensive network of terrorist that pervades Pakistan as a country," Rao told ANI.

"I think Hafiz Saeed has absolutely no locus standi, his certificate only goes confirms that Lakhvi is the mastermind of 26/11. If anybody had any doubt in mind, here is the proof," he added.

The JuD chief had yesterday said that India was trying to put pressure on Pakistan through the U.N. and the U.S. to punish Lakhvi for the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

According to reports, Saeed said that Lakhvi is innocent as there has been no evidence against him for his involvement in the Mumbai attack case.

The JuD chief's comments came after New Delhi took up Lakhvi's matter with the UN.

India had earlier requested the UN to raise this matter with Pakistan and said that Lakhvi's release was in violation of the norms of the global body.