Union Govt declares Azhar, Saeed, Dawood, Lakhvi individual terrorists

Surjit Kumar Dhal, New Delhi, Sept 5:  The Indian Government has declared Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, Mumbai terror attack accused Zaki-ur-Rehman-Lakhvi and fugitive mob boss Dawood Ibrahim as individual terrorists  under the new anti-terror law. The decisions have been taken nearly a month after Parliament approved a crucial amendment to The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act, 1967.

          The ministry cited a series of terror acts in which Pakistan-based Azhar was involved that include attack on the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly complex in 2001, attack on Parliament in 2001, attack on Pathankot air base in 2016 attacks on BSF camp in Srinagar in 2017 and explosion of a CRPF bus at Pulwama on February 14. Azhar was also designated as a global terrorist by the UN under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 on May 1, 2019 and was declared as a proclaimed offender by the special judge (POTA), New Delhi. The Centre believes that Maulana Masood Azhar is involved in terrorism and Maulana Masood Azhar is to be notified as a terrorist under the said Act…,” a home ministry notification said.  On Saeed, the home ministry said he was involved in various attacks including Red Fort in 2000, a CRPF camp in Rampur (Uttar Pradesh), India’s worst terror strike in Mumbai in 2008 in which 166 people were killed and the attack on a BSF convoy at Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir in 2015.

          Saeed, also the founder of Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD), was designated as a global terrorist by the UN under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 on December 10, 2008. LeT commander Lakhvi was involved in various attacks including Red Fort attack in 2000, Rampur CRPF camp in 2008, Mumbai in 2008 and on a BSF convoy at Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir.

          The LeT was listed as a terrorist organisation under the First Schedule to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, Lakhvi was designated by the United Nations as a global terrorist under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 on the 10th December, 2008. Dawood runs an international underworld crime syndicate and is involved in perpetrating acts of terror, promoting religious fundamentalism, terror financing, arms smuggling, circulation of counterfeit currency, money laundering, narcotics, extortion and benami real estate business in India and abroad. He was also involved in assassination attempts on prominent personalities to create social disharmony and terrorise common man.

          Dawood was designated as a global terrorist by the UN under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 and he is listed in al-Qaeda sanction list on November 3, 2003 and the United Nations Security Council had also issued a special notice in his name on April 6, 2006.