Coming a long way; India declares Dawood, Azhar, Saeed and Lakhvi as 'terrorists' under UAPA

New Delhi, September 4: Fighting for justice, India has come a long way in its quest to put the traitors and culprits behind bars. Taking the matter on international forum, the United Nations, India played a vital role in UN’s decision on designating Masood Azhar as a global terrorist. Abiding by the same, the Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday proscribed Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Maulana Masood Azhar, Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, chief operational commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi and 1993 Mumbai blasts mastermind Dawood Ibrahim as terrorists under UAPA.

 

Issuing a gazette notification, the MHA cited, Maulana Masood Azhar, is founder, chief and key leader of proscribed terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is listed as a terrorist organisation under the First Schedule to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 at serial number 6. Further adding it highlighted that JeM under the patronage of Azhar, extensively undertakes recruitment drives for terrorist activities and his preaching wings regularly organise events in order to urge people to promote terrorism and support their actions against India.

Moving ahead, the MHA's notification said that Hafiz Muhammad Saeed is founder, chief and key leader of proscribed terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) / Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and LeT is listed as a terrorist organisation under the First Schedule to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 at serial No. 5. Saeed has been involved in various terrorist attacks in India, which include Red Fort attack (22nd December, 2000), Rampur attack (1st January, 2008), 26/11 Mumbai attack and attack on BSF Convoy at Udhampur in Jammu & Kashmir (5th August, 2015).

The MHA said in its notification that Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi is the chief operational commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and also one of its founder members. Lakhvi has been involved in various terrorist attacks in India, including the Red Fort attack (22nd December, 2000), Rampur attack (1st January, 2008), 26/11 Mumbai attack (26-28 Nov.2008) and attack on BSF Convoy at Udhampur in Jammu & Kashmir (5th August, 2015).

The MHA also declared underworld don Dawood Ibrahim as a terrorist under UAPA and said that Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar 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 and is also involved in assassination attempts on prominent personalities to create social disharmony and terrorise common man.

The MHA's notification added that Dawood Ibrahim is designated as a Global terrorist by the United Nations under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 and he is listed in Al-Qaida sanction list on the 3rd November, 2003.

The notification also added that Al-Qaeda Sanction Committee of United Nations Security Council had listed Dawood Ibrahim for participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf or in support of, supplying, selling or transferring arms and related material or otherwise supporting acts or activities of Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

The notification said that Indian government believes that Dawood is involved in terrorism and he is to be notified as a terrorist under the said Act.