Lahore High Court adjourns hearing on Saeed's petition, govt lawyer seeks time

The hearing on the petition filed by JuD chief Hafiz Saeed and four others challenging their house arrest under the anti-terrorism act was adjourned on Monday after a government lawyer requested for more time to prepare for the case.

"We could not get time to prepare the case as we were informed about today's hearing in the nick of the time," the government lawyer told a two-member Lahore High Court bench headed by Justice Syed Kazim Raza Shamsi. Accepting his request, the court adjourned the hearing till Tuesday.

Mumbai attack mastermind Saeed, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdur Rehman Abid, Qazi Kashif Hussain and Abdullah Ubaid have filed the petition in the Lahore High Court and challenged their detention through senior advocate A K Dogar.

The government on January 30 had put Saeed and the four leaders of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-e-Insaniat (FIF) under house arrest in Lahore under the country's anti-terrorism act.

In their petition, Saeed and the four others had said the government in light of interior ministry's order detained them for a period of 90 days, with effect from January 30, in exercise of powers under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

They requested the court to declare the government order malafide, without jurisdiction and one that voids the fundamental right to their life and liberty.

The names of Saeed and 37 other JuD and FIF leaders had earlier also been placed on the Exit Control List, barring them from leaving the country. Saeed was also put under house arrest after the Mumbai terror attack in November 2008, but he was freed by a court in 2009. Saeed also carries a reward of USD 10 million announced by the US for his role in terror activities.