Pakistan keeps Rs 7 lakh bounty on Masood Azhar

Pakistan has once again raised questions over its counter-terrorism claims ahead of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) plenary in October, with its Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) naming Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar in its latest Red Book of most-wanted terrorists.

The FIA has increased the bounty on Azhar by PKR 20 lakh to PKR 70 lakh, five years after it had announced a PKR 50 lakh reward for information leading to his arrest. The move appears to be a fresh attempt by Pakistan to show that it is pursuing Azhar, while continuing to maintain that the JeM chief is not in the country.

Pakistan has claimed since 2021 that Azhar had disappeared from the country and was hiding in Afghanistan. However, Indian intelligence agencies, based on technical analysis over the past six months, have assessed that Azhar is hiding in Nawabshah in Pakistan's Sindh province, sources said.