Lahore:
Banned terrorist groups in Pakistan's Punjab province are gaining strength after joining hands on a new platform Muslim United Army and have become a serious challenge for the government which lacks resources to effectively counter their activities.
The banned groups - Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi have a common cause under the banner of MUA and their activities are also in line with those of the Taliban, according to a report drawn up by the Crime Investigation Department.
The report also said militancy has been rapidly taking roots in Punjab province, especially in the five districts of Muzaffarghar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan and Bhakkar.
"As several members of the three banned groups have taken part in the Afghan war, they have developed a nexus with the Taliban," a senior CID officer said.
"In the suicide bombings of the Naval War College and Federal Investigation Agency office in Lahore and the terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan cricket team and police training school in Manawan, the facilitators of the perpetrators were from these organisations operating in Punjab," the officer said.
Police officials also believe the three groups had joined hands primarily to target the security forces.
Though the main actors of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Malik Ishaq and Akram Lahori are in jails in Multan and Karachi respectively, they are operating their group from behind bars in connivance with the prison staff, sources said.
Though both are being tried in a number of cases, they are yet to be convicted in a single case due to lack of evidence. Police claim people are afraid of giving testimony against them.
Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar is among 20 terrorists and criminals whose extradition has been sought by India. Police officials claim Azhar has gone into hiding.
India had freed Azhar and two other terrorists to secure the release of passengers of an Indian Airlines flight that was hijacked and taken to Kandahar in 1999.
Lashkar-e-Toiba founder Hafiz Saeed is currently under house arrest in Lahore. He was detained in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.
The CID official said the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is currently at the forefront in carrying out attacks in Punjab along with the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan. He also said the Muslim United Army had developed a core group in five districts as the three banned groups had their seminaries there.