In a major step to curb terror activities, the Home Ministry on Saturday designated 23 individuals as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). As per the government's order, the action was taken due to their association with Pakistan-based terror outfits, including Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). They are accused of recruiting and training people for terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir and other border regions.
What Home Ministry Said?
In its notification, the home ministry pointed out that several of them have associations with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed and have been involved in multiple terror attacks. "Rana Iftikhar, 54, coordinates anti-jihadist organisations, incites youth to commit terrorist acts, and is a close associate of Hafiz Saeed," the home ministry stated.
"Abdul Rauf, 52, is associated with LeT and Jamaat-ud-Dawa. He is involved in planning and coordinating terrorist activities and raising funds. He is one of the key terrorists of LeT under the direct command of Hafiz Saeed," it added. "Hafiz Khalid Waleed, 51, works under the protection of Hafiz Saeed with the intention of carrying out terrorist activities and is the mastermind of several terrorist incidents," the centre pointed out.
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NIA Likely To Take Action
With their inclusion in this list, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) will be able to freeze their funds, ban the sale of arms, and seize their assets. Earlier in 2019, the anti-terrorism law was amended to include individual terrorists in the list.
Who Are Included In List?
The centre has included Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, Mohammad Musadik alias Doctor, Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan alias Abu Saad, Hafiz Abdul Shakoor alias Qari Zarrar, Abdullah Jihadi, Ghulam Farid, Maulana Imdadullah Makki, and Wasim Noor Jat in the list.
Apart from this, Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists Firdous Ahmad Bhat, Haroon Rashid Ganai, Bilal Ahmad Mir, Abid Qayyum Lone, Nazir Ahmad Gujjar, Abdul Rauf (alias Hafiz Abdul Rauf), Ashfaq Ahmad, Hafiz Khalid Waleed, Maulana Saifullah Khalid, Mohammad Yaqoob, Maulana Yusuf Taibi, Owais Farooq, Qari Yaqoob Sheikh, Rana Iftikhar, and Mohammad Shahid Faisal have also been included in the list.