New Delhi: The Indian government has formally asked Pakistan to extradite Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the alleged mastermind behind the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, according to reliable sources.
Sources have confirmed that the Ministry of External Affairs has inititaed legal proceedings for Saeed’s extradition from Pakistan government. Notably, Saeed is among Bharat’s most wanted terrorists and carries a $10 million bounty placed by the United States for his purported involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
Despite Bharat’s repeated demands for Saeed’s extradition to face trial for the Mumbai attacks, the absence of an extradition treaty between India and Pakistan complicates the process. Hafiz Saeed, who denies leadership within LeT and claims innocence, has faced various legal challenges over the years.
Initially arrested in July 2019, Saeed received an 11-year sentence just months before Pakistan’s review by the Financial Action Task Force. In April of the following year, a Pakistani court reportedly sentenced Saeed to 31 years in prison for terrorism financing. However, there is uncertainty regarding his current incarceration status, with conflicting reports suggesting he may have been released from house arrest in 2017.
Hafiz Saeed has experienced a series of arrests and releases over the past decade. In a related development, Bharat declared Saeed’s son, Talha Saeed, a terrorist under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) last year. Currently, Talha Saeed is gearing up to contest the upcoming general elections in Pakistan under the banner of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a political party founded by his father.
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