Pakistan aid to Hafiz Saeed indicates supporting terrorism: India

NEW DELHI: Coming down heavily on Hafiz Saeed and his ‘official sponsors in Pakistan’, India on Friday described Islamabad’s support to internationally-designated terrorist and his proscribed Jamaat-ud-Dawa as nothing short of “mainstreaming of terrorism”. Reacting to arrangements the Pakistan government made for Saeed’s public rally in Lahore on Thursday, MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said the fact that Saeed held a two-day congregation of his proscribed JuD at a national monument with a large number of police standing guard despite being a designated terrorist entity highlighted “blatant disregard for the global norms evolving against terrorism”.

Saeed, who orchestrated the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, on Thursday addressed a public rally at the ground of the Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore where he spewed venom against India and the US. The Pakistan government had run two special trains to transport people to Lahore for the JuD’s congregation that began Thursday. “This was an event that took place at a national monument in Pakistan, where large number of police were deployed, the event was advertised all across Pakistan.

It was an event by an organisation proscribed not only by India but by the US, UK, Australia and the UN under Resolution 1267. The event was addressed by an individual who is designated a terrorist under the same UNSC Resolution 1267,” Akbaruddin said.

“If these sort of facilities provided to a designated terrorist organisation or to a designated terrorist entity, with people also indicating and reports that train services were provided for this organisation and entity, this is nothing short of mainstreaming a terrorist entity and a terrorist who is designated so all over the world.

This means this is blatant disregard for the global norms which are evolving against terrorism,” the spokesperson said. Saeed, who roams around freely in Pakistan despite being a designated terrorist, had told the rally “Pakistanis and Kashmiris are blood brothers and they cannot be separated.

The elections in Kashmir cannot be a substitute of plebiscite.” Saeed, also the founder of banned terror group Laskar-e-Taiba, added, “efforts are being made to declare Jihad as terrorism.” Guarded by JuD men, Saeed alleged some elements were trying to make Pakistan a slave of the US.