Lahore, Jun 19 (IANS): A Pakistan anti-terrorism court (ATC) has convicted four Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD)leaders in one of the terror financing cases registered against the banned organisation by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in different cities of Punjab province.

On Thursday, ATC-III Presiding Judge Ijaz Ahmad Buttar convicted Malik Zafar Iqbal and Muhammad Yahya Aziz and handed them down five-year rigorous imprisonment each with a fine of 50,000 PKR, Dawn news reported.

The judge also sentenced Abdul Rehman Makki and Abdul Salam to one-year imprisonment each with 20,000 PKR fine.

The CTD had in 2019 registered the FIR against the convicts.

Initially the trial was held before Sahiwal ATC, however, it was later shifted to Lahore following an order passed by the Lahore High Court on the request of the convicts.

The CTD had registered total 23 FIRs against the JuD.

The convicts, through their counsel, have denied the charges, alleging that they had been implicated in the case due to malice and ulterior motives, reports Dawn news.

They said they were not the office-bearers when the organisation was proscribed by the government.

The judge said in the order that the sentence of the convicts would run concurrently with their previous sentence, if any.

CTD spokesman said three of the convicts were also ‘UN Designated Persons' involved in terrorism financing.

He said their conviction would play a major role in checking terrorism financing in Pakistan.

On Feb 12, another ATC had handed down five-and-a-half-year rigorous imprisonment to Hafiz Saeed, leader of the JuD who mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack.