As the pressure from the US mounted on Pakistan to act against its terror outfits, the Pakistan government today placed Maulana Masood Azhar, the founder of Jaish-e-Mohammed, under house arrest, according to reports from Islamabad.
The action against Masood came a day after security forces arrested key Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhwi, suspected to be the mastermind behind the recent Mumbai attacks, along with 20 other militants.
As Pakistan starts bulking under international pressure, the Manmohan Singh government is waiting to see maximum initiative from that country before deciding its next course of action. But it is also adapting to the fact that Pakistan authorities will not hand over anyone from the “most wanted list” for trial in India.
India’s demand for the extradition of suspects in the Mumbai attacks is out of question, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said today, making it clear that his country, which had arrested 20 people since Saturday, would try them under its own laws.
“The arrests are being made for our own investigation... and even if allegations are proved against any suspect, he will not be handed over to India,” Qureshi told reporters after Eid prayers in his hometown Multan.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told Business Standard, “if the Pakistan government can really act against those Pakistani elements who are using its soil to launch attack on India, then it’s welcome. What we have said is that they have to keep their commitment of not allowing their soil to be used by terrorists.”
Signaling that the UPA would prefer the Pakistan government taking action on its own than India striking the terror bases and waging a full scale war, Mukherjee said, “We have no quarrel with the Pakistani people. We are not even blaming the Pakistani government for the recent terror strikes. We maintain that some elements in Pakistan are involved in terror acts and the Pakistan government has to act against them.”
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Mukherjee reiterated that India has solid proof to show that the Mumbai attacks were planned and executed by terrorists in Pakistan. “Of course we have evidence to establish their involvement. There are infrastructure facilities available for the terrorists in Pakistan,” he said today.
As the US categorically asked Pakistan to act against its “non-state actors” in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks, restrictions were imposed yesterday on Azhar’s movements and he was confined to his Bahawalpur home.
The Jaish-e-Mohammad founder along with two key accused of the 1993 Mumbai blasts — underworld dons Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon — are on the most wanted list submitted to Pakistan by India.
The Pakistan Army has also assured that more arrests will be done and the crackdown against the banned militant group will continue till “desired results” are achieved.