Pak has no evidence to link JuD chief to Mumbai attacks:Pak AG

Rezaul H Laskar

Islamabad, Jun 5 (PTI) Pakistan has no evidence linking
the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Mohd Saeed to the
Mumbai terror attacks but was detained for the "national
security", a top legal official said Friday.

Saeed, linked to last year's Mumbai terror attacks, was
set free on June 2 by the Lahore High Court, triggering an
angry response from India which accused Pakistan of not being
serious about fighting terror.

Attorney General Latif Khosa said that there was an
"impression" in India and the world community that Saeed had a
role in the Mumbai attacks but made it clear that Pakistan had
no evidence linking him to the terrorist strikes.

Asked by Dawn News channel if there was any evidence
linking Saeed to the Mumbai attacks, Khosa replied: "Not to my
knowledge, not to my estimation and not to the government's
estimation... India is wanting him, we say no, he is not
involved and we (had to detain him) for national security and
maintenance of public order."

In reply to another question on why Saeed was detained
when there was no evidence against him, Khosa said this was
done because the UN Security Council had imposed restrictions
on the JuD and its leaders through a resolution.

"I am not saying that they (JuD) were involved (in the
Mumbai attacks)... This is what India is saying. I am not
toeing India's line at all. We have our own perception," he
added.

Khosa also hinted that the government believed Saeed's
detention "would be conducive to public order, security and
safety of the country" but declined to give details because of
the "sensitivity of the matter".

"So the cumulative effect is that we thought his
detention would be necessitated to maintain public order and
in the interest of safety and security of the country," he
said.

Saeed was released on Tuesday from house arrest nearly
six months after he was detained in connection with the Mumbai
attacks. India and the US have expressed their unhappiness at
the move and the Pakistan government had said it intends to
appeal against the High Court's order.

Khosa also told reporters Thursday that the government
had provided the High Court classified evidence and proof to
back its claim that Saeed should be kept under "pre-emptive
detention". He said this evidence could not be made public
because of its sensitive nature.

The Attorney General made it clear that Saeed was not
being punished through punitive detention but had been placed
under house arrest to prevent any possible "disturbance of
public order". PTI RHL
PMR
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