NEW DELHI: Pakistan has raised the bounty on Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar to PKR 70 lakh and listed him as a fugitive in its latest Red Book of most wanted terrorists, news agency ANI reported citing sources.
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The development comes ahead of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) plenary scheduled for October, with Pakistan seeking to avoid being placed back on the global watchdog's grey list.
Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has increased the reward for information leading to most-wanted terrorist Azhar's capture by PKR 20 lakh. The agency had announced a PKR 50 lakh bounty on him in 2021.
Sources told ANI that Pakistan's latest move is aimed at projecting action against terrorism ahead of the FATF review.
Pakistan had claimed in 2021 that Azhar was no longer in the country and had fled to Afghanistan. The Shehbaz Sharif-led government has since maintained that the JeM chief is not on Pakistani soil.
Five years after announcing the initial bounty, the FIA has now raised it to PKR 70 lakh and included Azhar in its latest Red Book of most wanted terrorists.
However, the decision of declaring Azhar as 'fugitive' comes merely to mislead the global community and hide sheltered-terror outfits on its soil.
In October, Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif is also scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump on UNGA sidelines.
Masood Azhar-led Jaish stands responsible for numerous terror attacks in India, including Parliament attack that took place in 2001.
