LAHORE: Reacting to Pakistan's statement that 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed and his 12 close aides will be arrested 'very soon', India said it is just a “cosmetic step.”
“Let us not get fooled by such cosmetic steps. Pakistan’s sincerity to take action against terrorists and terror groups will be judged on the basis of their ability to demonstrate verifiable, credible and irreversible action against terror groups operating from their soil,” said Raveesh Kumar, HT quoted spokesperson of the external affairs ministry Raveesh Kumar as saying.
Previously, Niyab Haider Naqvi had said police arrested several members of the banned organisations on terror financing and subsequently they were handed down imprisonment by the anti-terrorism courts.
"So these suspects will also be arrested very soon," Naqvi said.
The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab Police on Wednesday registered 23 FIRs against 13 leaders of Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD) including Saeed on the charges of terror financing in different cities of Punjab province.
"The CTD has booked the (13) leaders of JuD and other proscribed organisations on the charges of terror financing. As the FIRs have been registered the suspects will be arrested shortly," Punjab police spokesperson Niyab Haider Naqvi said.
When asked why the CTD has not yet arrested Saeed and others despite their nomination in the FIRs, Naqvi said: "In first, the FIR is registered against a suspect and then he is arrested. Saeed and others nominated in the FIRs will also be arrested subsequently."
A source in the Imran Khan government said that the Punjab police are waiting for a go-ahead from the "top" to lay hand on Saeed.
"Saeed is present at his residence in Lahore's Jauhar Town and the police are waiting for a green signal from the government to raid his residence to arrest him," the source said.
Commitment to FATF
In June last year, the FATF placed Pakistan on the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are considered weak to tackle the challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing.
The source said it is likely that Saeed may be arrested this week as the Khan government appears keen to fulfill its obligations on terror financing under the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Pakistan failed to complete its action plan on terror financing on the FATF's deadline in June last.
The FATF had warned Islamabad to fulfill its commitment by another deadline of October or face action, which could possibly lead to the country's blacklisting.
The Paris-based global body is working to curb terrorism financing and money laundering and has asked Pakistan to reassess the operation of banned terrorist outfits in the country.
The Anti-Terrorism Courts recently handed down up to five years imprisonment to 12 members of the JuD and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) on the charges of terrorism financing.
The US declared the LeT as a foreign terrorist organisation in June 2014. The US Department of the Treasury has designated Saeed as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and the US, since 2012, has offered a USD 10 million reward for information that brings Saeed to justice.