Pakistan has rejected India’s request for the extradition of LeT chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed, saying there was no bilateral extradition treaty between the two countries.
“Pakistan has received a request from the Indian authorities, seeking extradition of Hafiz Saeed in a so-called money laundering case,” Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch was quoted as saying.
However, she added that there was no proposal to follow up on India’s request, as “no bilateral extradition treaty exists between Pakistan and India.”
India on Friday confirmed that it has sought the extradition of Saeed from Pakistan to face trial in a particular case against him in this country.
“The person in question (Saeed) is wanted in numerous cases in India. He is also a UN-proscribed terrorist. In this regard, we have conveyed a request along with relevant supporting documents to the Government of Pakistan to extradite him to India,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a media briefing.
He said India has been flagging the activities of Saeed for years and the latest request for his extradition was made to the Pakistani authorities a few weeks ago.
India blames Saeed for being involved in a number of terror attacks in the country, including the 2611 Mumbai attack.
On reports that Saeed’s Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) has fielded candidates for most of the constituencies, including Saeed’s son, in the coming general elections, the Indian spokesperson said the mainstreaming of radical elements was nothing new in the neighbouring country. As far as India was concerned, it always kept an eye on all developments which could have an impact on the country’s security, he added.