Chief of Jamaat-ud-Dawa Hafiz Saeed – File Photo

ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: The government needs watertight evidence from the United States to act against Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed.

“In order to proceed against Hafiz Saeed we need hard and undeniable evidence that can withstand judicial scrutiny,” an official of the interior ministry told Dawn, reacting to the $10 million bounty announced by the US for information leading to the radical leader’s arrest.

“We can’t prosecute a Pakistani national on the basis of hearsay just to please India,” he said about the reward announced by a US official in New Delhi.Interior Minister Rehman Malik said in a TV talk show that the government was yet to be officially intimated by the US about the bounty for Mr Saeed, who is now among the top five men wanted by the Americans.

Activities of Hafiz Saeed, who founded the now banned Lashkar-e-Taiba during the mid-1990s, have largely focussed on the freedom struggle in Kashmir, but recently he has emerged as one of the main leaders of the Difa-i-Pakistan Council (DPC), an alliance of some 40 rightwing groups opposing reopening of suspended Nato supply routes to Afghanistan.

The reasons cited in the US ‘Rewards for justice’ notification include an Interpol ‘red corner notice’ issued by the Indian government against Mr Saeed for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and designation of the two groups founded by him as foreign terrorist organisations by the United Nations and US.

He acknowledged that the names of LeT, JuD and Hafiz Saeed had come up several times during Pakistan-US dialogue over the past year and a half, but claimed that nothing concrete had been shared by American officials with Pakistanis in this regard.

The US programme offering millions of dollars has been used to track terrorists on the run but Mr Saeed’s case is unique in that he freely moves about in a country that has been a close US ally in the war on terror, but is currently reviewing the terms of its cooperation.

He has been participating in anti-US rallies of the DPC and only late last month, attended a demonstration against possible restoration of Nato supply routes outside the parliament building.

Mr Saeed, during a TV show, mocked at the bounty: “I’m not hiding in caves for rewards to be announced for my capture. The US is frustrated because of our campaign against resumption of Nato supply.” He challenged the US to get him arrested.

The PML-Q, a key ruling coalition partner, claimed that the bounty was unlawful and meant to appease India.

“The US has announced reward for information about a person against whom no criminal case exists in America,” the party’s secretary general Senator Mushahid Hussain said at a media conference, where he urged the government to protest with Washington against the move.

Mr Saeed believes the bounty on him and $2 million for locating his brother-in-law Hafiz Abdul Rahman Makki is an attempt to please India and lure certain mafias into getting him.

“I am among the people of my country and moving here freely. I fully believe in Almighty Allah as my protector and am not afraid of the Americans,” he said.

“Although the US has pleased India through this announcement, it is, in fact, more concerned over DPC’s growing popularity. The DPC will not budge from its stance on Nato supply. The US knows that it will be very difficult for the government to restore the Nato supply after DPC’s strong opposition,” he said.

Talking to Dawn, JuD leader Amir Hamza said the head money should better be placed on US President Barack Obama and his predecessor George Bush for conspiring against Pakistan.

In reply to a question, he said: “The security being provided by JuD’s volunteers to their head at the moment is sufficient.”

JuD spokesman Yayha Mujahid said Hafiz Saeed would continue performing his work without any fear. He said the JuD would never withdraw from its stance against the proposed restoration of Nato supply and giving India the most favoured nation (MFN) status.

US embassy spokesman Mark Stroh rejected JuD’s claim that the bounty had been announced to please India and stop the group from opposing resumption of Nato supplies.

“It is a ridiculous claim of the JuD chief. Mr Saeed was listed on the UN 1267/1989 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee since Dec 10, 2008, as an individual associated with the Al Qaeda terrorist organisation and, thus, subject to international sanctions,” he said.

The spokesman quoted a statement issued by the US state department through the embassy on Tuesday.

“The US department of state has authorised a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (sic) founder Hafiz Mohammad Saeed and a reward of up to $2 million for information leading to the location of LeT’s second-in-command, Hafiz Abdul Rahman Makki,” the press release said.

It said that the LeT was designated by the state department as a foreign terrorist organisation on Dec 20, 2001, and he participated in the planning of the four-day terrorist assault on Mumbai in Nov 2008.

“Saeed and his organisation continue to spread ideology advocating terrorism, as well as virulent rhetoric condemning the US, India, Israel, and other perceived enemies.

“Hafiz Abdul Rahman Makki is Saeed’s deputy and head of LeT’s political affairs department. Makki previously served as head of LeT’s foreign relations department and has helped raise funds for LeT.”

It said that early in 2007, Mr Saeed provided approximately $248,000 to an LeT terrorist training camp and approximately $165,000 to an LeT-affiliated seminary.

“On Nov 4, 2010, the US treasury department designated him a ‘specially designated national’ which subjects him to sanctions.

“We encourage anyone with information on these individuals to contact the nearest US embassy or consulate, any US military commander or the Rewards for Justice office. All information will be kept strictly confidential,” it said.