The Lahore High Court has deferred the hearing of a petition moved by Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief, Hafiz Saeed, till September 24, and has sought direction from the government over the issue of defending Saeed before a US Court, which issued summons to him, former ISI chiefs and other officials on a law suit filed by relatives of US nationals killed in Mumbai attacks.
The Daily Times quoted Saeed's counsel AK Dogar, as saying that the relatives of American national Rabbi Gavriel Noah Holtzberg and his wife Rivka, who were gunned down by militants during the 2008 Mumbai attacks, have filed nine claims against banned outfit Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT), stating Saeed as its head; Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Azam Cheema and Sajid Majid; former heads of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen Nadeem Taj and Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha; and ISI's Major Iqbal and Major Samir Ali.
He said that the complainants accused them of providing material support for the 26/11 attacks. For each of the claims, the plaintiffs have asked for damages in excess of 75,000 dollars, to be awarded by a jury.
Dogar submitted that Saeed's JuD is a charitable organisation and has no nexus with LeT. He said there is no evidence to suggest that Saeed is involved in anti-state activities.