Hafiz Saeed listed in Pakistan's Anti-Terror Act

Over two weeks after placing Jamaat-ud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed under house arrest, Pakistan has included the name of the Mumbai attacks mastermind in the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

The Punjab government has listed Saeed and his close aide Qazi Kashif's name under the ATA, Dawn online quoted an official as saying.

Abdullah Obaid from Faisalabad, Zafar Iqbal and Abdur Rehman Abid from Muridke were also added to the list.

The JuD chief's name has also been put on the exit control list and barred from leaving the country.

Saeed and the four men had been placed under house arrest on January 30 in Lahore.

According to a senior police official, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) had added their names to the list of the 1,450 'fourth schedulers' after an order by the country's Interior Ministry.

They were identified as "active members of the Jamaat-ud Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniyat".

The ministry directed the CTD to "move and take necessary action" against the five.

The Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 empowers the government to mark a person as "proscribed", and place that person on the fourth schedule on an ex-parte basis.

Listing of Saeed in the fourth schedule shows he is involved in terror activities.

Those listed face a barrage of legal consequences like travel bans and scrutiny of assets etc.

Any violation of provision of the Fourth Schedule may result in imprisonment of up to three years and fine or both.

The JuD chief is under UN sanctions and carries a bounty of $10 million on his head. He is accused of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai attacks which left over 160 persons dead, and hundreds injured.

-IANS

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