Pakistan government extended detention of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi by 30 days under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO), a media report said.

Lakhvi has been behind bars since Feb 19, 2009, after an FIR was registered with the Federal Investigation Agency against him for allegedly training terrorists and facilitating the 2008 Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed and hundreds injured.

On Monday, the federal government, however, extended his detention in the Adiala Jail under the MPO ordinance, the Dawn reported.

During the hearing, Islamabad’s Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mujahid Sher Dil informed the court that Lakhvi’s detention has been extended by the government under the MPO ordinance for 30 more days.

The high court bench, hearing a plea filed by Lakhvi’s counsel against the detention under the MPO, had sought the government’s reply over it. The case will be heard again Jan 26.

Earlier in the day, a division bench of the anti-terrorism court here, comprising Justice Noorul Haq and Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, resumed the hearing on a plea filed by the government against grant of bail to Lakhvi.

Federal Investigation Agency’s prosecutor Mohammad Azhar Chaudhry told the court that two countries have demanded handing over of Lakhvi to India.

Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui replied that this was a diplomatic issue, which needs to be addressed by the government.

An FIA petition had challenged the Dec 18 decision of an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad which granted bail to Lakhvi.

Chaudhry urged the court to hold hearings against grant of bail to Lakhvi on an urgent basis.