It’s official now! Hafiz Saeed-led JuD, Haqqani network not banned in Pakistan

An official list of 60 proscribed terror outfits, released by Pakistan, has cleared all doubts about Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed. His terror group Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Afghanistan-based dreaded Haqqani network are not banned in Pakistan.

JuD is listed as a terror outfit by the United Nations, but it’s not a terror group in Pakistan.

However, the Pakistan government has put the JuD on the list of groups being closely watched by officials. This means that it can be banned if found guilty of promoting militancy.

Hafiz Saeed has a $10 million US government bounty against him. He is responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people, but he moves freely across Pakistan.

Moreover, he has recently filed a plea in a Lahore court, seeking ban on the release of Bollywood movie Phantom in Pakistan, alleging that the film, set on post-26/11 attacks and global terrorism, contains "filthy propaganda" against the country.

In the petition, Saeed pleaded that the Saif Ali Khan-starrer film, which is scheduled to release on 28 August, has "venom against Pakistan and Jamaat-ud-Dawa".

Further, the al-Qaeda-linked dreaded Haqqani network, blamed for several deadly attacks against Western and Indian interests in Afghanistan including the 2008 bombing of the Indian mission in Kabul, is also not on the list.

According to the list, there are 60 organisations banned by Pakistan for their involvement in militancy.

Arranged in alphabetical order, the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) is on number 39 while Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) is on 29.

The list also includes top militant groups like al-Qaeda and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

The Islamic State or Daesh, which had made in-roads in the region, is also not included in the list.

LeT and JeM were proscribed on January 14, 2002 in the wake of attack on Indian parliament.

The JuD is the only group under official observation, shows the list. The group runs schools and hospitals and carry out charitable work during floods and other natural disasters.

(Image: Reuters)