A Pakistani court on Wednesday ordered the provincial Punjab government to produce records relating to the house arrest of Hafeez Saeed, founder of the banned Lashkar-e-Tayiba, following a petition by his outfit challenging the detention.
A writ petition was filed in the Lahore high court on Tuesday on behalf of Saeed's outfit Jamat-ud-Dawa challenging his arrest on August 9, Saeed's lawyer Nazir Ahmed Ghazi told PTI over phone from Lahore.
In response to the petition, vacation judge Muhammad Akhtar Shabbir ordered the provincial Punjab government to produce the records relating to his arrest by August 23. The petition stated that Saeed had been granted permission to hold a public meeting in Lahore on August 12 in connection with Pakistan's Independence Day on August 14 but the permission was withdrawn on August 8 and he was detained on August 9.
It said Saeed was detained on the grounds that he may create law and order problem through his fiery speeches. Another reason cited for Saeed's arrest was that he had been meeting 'certain' religious leaders but did not name them.
"To be a fiery speaker is no disqualification and no court in Pakistan and India has disqualified anybody," Ghazi said, adding: "Saeed is no longer the leader of the LET and heads JUD, which is a non-governmental organisation that has taken active part in quake relief activities."
