Pak political-terror nexus exposed: Shehbaz Sharif's aide seen with Hafiz Saeed's son

Rana Sanaullah, a key aide to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, has been seen with Talha Saeed, the son of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed, at a wedding in Faisalabad, once again drawing attention to links between Pakistan’s political leadership and banned terror outfits.

Sanaullah, who serves as Sharif’s Advisor on Political Affairs, is seen greeting and shaking hands with Talha Saeed in a photograph that has gone viral on social media. India Today TV could not verify the exact date of the meeting.

Such appearances raise questions about how individuals associated with proscribed terror outfits continue to remain visible and influential despite global sanctions.

Talha Saeed is the son of Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind behind the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Both father and son have been sanctioned by India, the US and the United Nations Security Council. Hafiz Saeed faces asset freezes, travel restrictions, and an arms embargo for his role in terrorism-related activities, including the Mumbai attacks.

Although officially serving a prison sentence in Pakistan, Hafiz Saeed has often been reported to move freely within the country. His son, Talha Saeed, has been designated a terrorist by India under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Hafiz Saeed, among India’s most wanted terrorists, has also been named in investigations into the 2019 Pulwama attack that killed 40 CRPF personnel. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed several cases against him, linking him to terror financing and activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

This is not the first time that a Pakistani politician has shared a stage with a terrorist.

In May last year, a huge gathering in Kasur in Punjab province saw several Pakistani ministers with LeT-linked figures, including Pahalgam attack accused Saifullah Kasuri and Talha Saeed, underscoring concerns over a deep state-terror nexus.

VIRAL PIC SURFACES AFTER US REPORT ON PAK TERROR NEXUS

The viral photo of Sanaullah and Talha Saeed surfaced days after a report by the US Congressional Research Service said Pakistan continues to provide safe haven to multiple terrorist groups, including those targeting India and Jammu and Kashmir. It noted that despite years of military operations and policy interventions, such outfits “continue to operate on Pakistani soil.”

The report further underlined that several India-focused groups remain active, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), linked to the 2001 Parliament attack.

It identified a number of India- and Kashmir-centric organisations, such as LeT, JeM, Harkat-ul Jihad Islami, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and Hizbul Mujahideen, continue to function from Pakistani territory, posing persistent security challenges.

According to the assessment, Pakistan remains both a base and a target for a wide array of armed non-state actors, many of which have been active since the 1980s. Despite repeated crackdowns and policy measures, groups designated as terrorist organisations by the US and the UN have not been fully dismantled.

The report also flagged a sharp rise in terrorism within Pakistan in recent years. After five straight years of declining fatalities, which dropped to 365 in 2019, terror-related deaths have risen annually, “spiking to 4,001 in 2025, the highest toll in 11 years.”