The Supreme Court of Pakistan, Wednesday, set aside Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) decision to suspend the detention of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi.
The apex court declared the IHC’s order releasing Lakhvi from jail as void. He will remain in jail.
The court opined that the decision to grant bail to Lakhvi was taken in a hurry and directed the IHC to hear arguments of Lakhvi’s lawyer and the federal government of Pakistan.
The Islamabad High Court had on Dec 29 last year ordered the conditional release of Lakhvi, asking him to deposit a security bond of Rs. 1 million in response to his petition seeking an end to his detention.
The court order had come a day after Lakhvi was sent to two days’ judicial remand in an abduction case.
Earlier on December 18, Lakhvi was granted post-arrest bail by the anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad.
However, the federal government extended his detention in the Adiala Jail under the MPO Ordinance.
The government has already declared it will challenge the bail to Lakhvi by the anti-terror trial court.
Lakhvi and six other accused – Abdul Wajid, Mazhar Iqbal, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jameel Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younis Anjum – were allegedly involved in planning and executing the Mumbai attacks on November 26, 2008 that left 166 people dead.
Lakhvi was arrested in December 2008 and was indicted along with the six others on November 25, 2009 in connection with the case. The trial has been underway since 2009.
