Action against Saeed to be on test
India has stated the ‘house arrest' of infamous Hafiz Saeed as the first step towards bringing ‘the international terrorist to justice' but expressed its reservation as too early to jump to any logical conclusions. India's belief that Saeed was the mastermind of the Mumbai terror attacks of 2008 with the active support of the Pakistan army and the tacit approval of its spineless civil administration has been becoming clear over the years.
The report that free-movement of Saeed has been barred and his speaking to media restrained is yet to be put to test in coming days. These restrictions, if true, have been put on Hafiz Saeed by the provincial government of Punjab. But surprisingly enough, Jamaat-ud-Dawa which is also a terror outfit in Pakistan, has not been banned by Islamabad.
New Delhi particularly under present dispensation has shown neither the initiative nor the will to take on Saeed and other Pakistani terrorists directly. But it has been relentlessly pursuing with the US government to bring them to book. While the current moves are a result of American pressure on Pakistan at India's behest, they would come to naught if the pressure is eased.
Surprisingly, India has been trying to avoid declaring Pakistan as a terror State while it continues lobbying with the US to do so. This reticence needs to be shed if we are to carry conviction. After the latest restrictions by the Punjab province government, Hafiz Saeed cannot visit schools, colleges or other educational institutions, parks, hotels, airports, railway stations or other public places, and cannot give interviews or go to TV and radio stations or address public rallies and meetings.
But all this would be pushed aside unless India continues to make a noise about it. For years, State-sponsored terrorists infiltrating into this country have wrought havoc in India. The associates of Hafiz Saeed put on the terror list are Abdullah Ubaid, Zafar Iqbal, Abdul Rehman Abid and Kashif Niazi. They all have also been put on Exit Control List and barred from travelling abroad.
Interestingly, the earlier banned Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat leaders brought under similar restrictions in Pakistan have in the past addressed public rallies and even gone on Haj pilgrimage. The action against Saeed is a test of Pakistan's real intent. India would do well not to be smug and complacent.
