MHA declares Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's son a 'designated terrorist'

New Delhi, April 9: In a major development, Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Mohammad Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed has been declared a designated terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

 

 

 

In a notification dated April 8, the MHA said Hafiz Talha Saeed was a senior leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and head of the cleric wing of the terror outfit. Talha Saeed has been "actively involved in recruitment, fund collection, planning and executing attacks by LeT in India and Indian interests in Afghanistan," the notification said.

 

The notification comes on the day that Talha's father and the chief of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) Hafiz Saeed was sentenced to 31 years in jail by a Pakistan anti-terrorism court. Arrested in July 2019 in terror financing cases, the UN-designated terrorist has been languishing in the Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore after being convicted in 5 other cases and sentenced to prison for 36 years.

 

Such developments such as the crackdown on the LeT terrorist by Pakistan in the last few years is due to pressure put by FATF. Pakistan has been on the grey list of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) since June 2018 for failing to check money laundering, leading to terror financing

 

 

The MHA notification further said that Talha Saeed has been "actively visiting various LeT centres across Pakistan and during his sermons propagating for jihad against India, Israel, the United States of America and Indian interests in other western countries. "The Central Government believes that Hafiz Talha Saeed is involved in terrorism and Hafiz Talha Saeed should be notified as a terrorist under the said Act," said the MHA notification.

 

Notably, the Central Government had amended the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 in August 2019, to include the provision of designating an individual as a terrorist. It should be noted that prior to this amendment, only organizations could be designated as terrorist organizations.

 

 

Following the amendment, the Ministry had designated nine individuals as designated terrorists under provisions of the UAPA Act in July 2020. By invoking the UAPA, in September 2019, the Central government designated four individuals as terrorists, which included Maulana Masood Azhar, Hafeez Saeed, Zaki-ur-RehmanLakhvi and Dawood Ibrahim.

 

The nine individuals who were designated terrorists in July 2020 include Wadhawa Singh Babbar, Pakistan based Chief of "BabbarKhalsa International", Lakhbir Singh, Pakistan based Chief of "International Sikh Youth Federation", Ranjeet Singh, Pakistan based Chief of "Khalistan Zindabad Force", Paramjit Singh, Pakistan based Chief of "Khalistan Commando Force", Bhupinder Singh Bhinda, Germany based key member of "Khalistan Zindabad Force", Gurmeet Singh Bagga, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Canada based Chief of "Khalistan Tiger Force", and Paramjit Singh, United Kingdom-based Chief of "BabbarKhalsa International".