Court acts on Saeed petition
Pak leaders slam defence minister, call him mouthpiece of India
A Pakistani court on Wednesday served a notice on the Punjab government seeking a reply on the petition filed by JuD chief Hafiz Saeed and four others challenging their house arrest under the anti-terrorism Act.
Meanwhile, several political and religious leaders have lashed out at Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif, accusing him of becoming the “mouthpiece” of India after he branded Saeed as a “threat to the society”.
Mumbai attack mastermind Saeed, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdur Rehman Abid, Qazi Kashif Hussain and Abdullah Ubaid were put under house arrest on January 30.
They filed a petition in the Lahore High Court on Tuesday challenging their detention through senior advocate A K Dogar.
On Wednesday, a twomember bench of the Lahore High Court headed by Justice Sardar Muhammad Shamim Khan held a hearing on Saeed’s petition and sought a reply from the Punjab government by March 7, when the next hearing will be held.
In their petition, Saeed and the four others quoted interior minister Chaudhry Nisar’s claim that the government was fulfilling its obligations under the UN security council’s resolutions.
“The government has proved that Pakistan is a servile and a dependent nation. We have been serving the country, like iconic social worker Abdul Sattar Edhi, for the last many years,” they claimed in the petition.
“The government has no evidence that we are a ‘risk’ to (the) security of Pakistan, and merely on the basis of the UNSC resolutions, our liberty cannot be curtailed,” they said.
The petitioners requested the court to declare the government order malafide, without jurisdiction and one that voided the fundamental right to their life and liberty.
According to The News International, Pakistan leaders feel that Hafiz Saeed is a patriotic leader, and the defence minister’s statement was completely unwarranted.
Defence of Pakistan Council chairman Maulana Samiul Haq, Shah Zain Bugti, Sardar Attique Ahmad Khan, Liaquat Baloch, Senator Muhammad Ali Durrani, Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed, Sardar Latif Ahmad Khosa, Senator Hafiz Hamdullah and Jamshed Ahmad Dasti were some of the leaders who came down heavily on Mr Asif.
Shah Zain Bugti said that Saeed’s detention had weakened the struggle of the Kahsmiris. Former Prime Minister Azad Kashmir Sardar Muhammad Attique said government functionaries like Mr Asif were issuing media statements with the sole intention of appeasing India.