26/11 Mastermind & LeT Militant Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi Sentenced By Pakistan Court For 15 Yrs

Over the charges of terror financing, Lakhvi was arrested six days, has been out on bail 2015, was arrested by Punjab province's Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and a case was registered in a Lahore police station.

(File Photo/ Getty)

New Delhi: The anti-terrorism court of Pakistan on Friday sentenced Lashkar-e-Taiba's Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, to 15-years in jail, news agency IANS reported. Over the charges of terror financing, Lakhvi was arrested six days, has been out on bail in 2015, was arrested by Punjab province's Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and a case was registered in a Lahore police station.  After he was released on bail in 2015, his whereabouts were unknown. However, it was widely believed he had continued playing a key role in directing the activities of LeT even while he was in prison after being arrested in the aftermath of the Mumbai carnage. "Lakhvi is accused of running a dispensary, using funds collected for terrorism financing. He and others also collected funds from this dispensary and used these funds for further terrorism financing. He also used these funds for personal expenses," the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab province had said last week. News agency PTI had quoted its sources as saying, "Lakhvi is being interrogated by the CTD Punjab in connection with terror financing and related matters. He will soon be presented before the anti-terrorism court in Lahore." The UN Security Council’s 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee had recently allowed for a monthly payment of Pakistani Rupee 1.5 lakh for Lakhvi to meet his personal expenses. Meanwhile, on December 25, Pakistan’s anti-terrorism department sentenced the founder of LeT Hafiz Saeed along with four others, over charges of terror financing for 15 years.