Hafiz Saeed's brother says Pakistan put JuD chief under house arrest due to Indian pressure

Hafiz Saeed and four other men were placed under house arrest on January 30 in Lahore.

New Delhi: The brother of 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed has said that Pakistan detained the Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief under India's pressure.

Talking to an Indian news channel, Hafiz Masood said although the JuD is under the observation of the authorities, the organisation has not done anything illegal, but is involved in charity work, runs schools and dispensaries. "Should we be banned for this or extended support," asked Masood.

When asked who could be behind Saeed's detention, Masood said Pakistan did it under India's pressure. 

“We think that it has been done under pressure from India. They want to send a message to the world, to distract attention from the problems in Kashmir, to focus on Hafiz Saeed and Pakistan, so that India's misdeeds are kept hidden... India wants to create a terrorism narrative. All this has been done under pressure from India... and the Pakistan government has given in to the pressure,” Masood told CNN-News18.

He added that when the UN put sanctions against the JuD, our dispensaries came under the direct supervision of authorities. In Muridke, the Punjab government is running them under its close watch. So, the organistaion has been under control for long.

"We have not been told about any restriction on our activities," added Masood.

“We have nothing to do with Laskhar that is a Kashmiri unit. It is indigenous and it is working there,” he further claimed.

He said that Sharif should stop trying to be India’s friend and give more support to his cause.

Commenting on "the Pakistan Prime Minister's approach towards India, Msaood said: “Nawaz Sharif has his own priorities, he has reached out to India in the hope of friendship. It is his strategy, he thinks issues will be solved through peace and friendship. But India has shown arrogance and violence in response to Pakistan's offer of peace, India has seen Pakistan's gesture of peace as a sign of weakness."

"We see Sharif as a peaceful man who is a friend of Kashmiris. Sharif is continuing on that path, where India is rejecting peace and oppressing Kashmiris. We want Sharif to instead give more support to Kashmiris instead of trying to be India's friend,” he said.

Saeed and four other men were placed under house arrest on January 30 in Lahore. On February 18, the name of the JuD chief, who is under UN sanction and carries a bounty of $10 million, was included in the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Saeed has also been put on the exit control list which bars him from leaving Pakistan.

Meanwhile, India today called for an internationally mandated action against Hafiz Saeed.