Hafiz Saeed Challenges Conviction in Lahore Court

Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the Mumbai terror attacks, has filed a petition in a Pakistani court challenging his conviction on multiple counts of terror financing. Saeed, who leads the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), is contesting several years of prison sentences levied against him and his associates.

The petition was submitted to the Lahore High Court, where a two-member bench consisting of Justices Shahbaz Rizvi and Tariq Mahmood Bajwa has been assigned to hear the case. Although the exact date of the hearing remains undisclosed, court officials have confirmed its scheduling.

Saeed, an internationally designated terrorist with a $10 million bounty by the US, has been imprisoned in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail since his 2019 arrest. Despite his conviction, rumors persist that he resides at a "safe place" outside of jail. Saeed is notably the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba, responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that claimed 166 lives.

(With inputs from agencies.)