NCP terms Lakhvi securing bail as 'unfortunate'

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Friday termed the securing of bail by 26/11 terror attack accused Zaki Ur Rehman Lakhvi as 'unfortunate', noting that Pakistan's decision to release the extremist mere days after the gruesome terror attack in Peshawar sends mixed messages to the world.

"Indo-Pak relations have seen a lot of developments in the past few days. On one hand, a parliamentary delegation from that nation visited New Delhi and interacted with Indian MPs and we discussed the normalization of the situation between our two countries. However, yesterday's actions are quite unfortunate, occurring as they did soon after Pakistan said that it will take a strong stand against terrorists, following the attack on Peshawar," NCP leader Majeed Memon told ANI.

"The attack on Mumbai in 2008 was an act that was condemned around the world because it specifically targeted tourists. If a person implicated in such a crime is allowed to go to court and get bail, what message is sent across?" he added.

Stating that the citizens of both nations want to live in harmony, Memon further claimed that the Pakistani authorities did not wish to prosecute Lakhvi.

"The truth is that those in power in Pakistan did not wish to prosecute Lakhvi. It is unfortunate that this should occur so soon after our meeting the Pakistani delegates, with whom we discussed how the citizens of both nations want to leave in peace and harmony," he said.

On Thursday, Pakistan's anti-terror court granted bail to Lakhvi. According to reports in The Dawn, Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency's prosecutor had disagreed with the bail plea, but the court released Lakhvi with surety bonds worth Pakistan Rs 5,00,000.

Lakhvi is one of the prime accused in the terror attacks that took place in Mumbai in 2008, in which 161 people were killed, with over 600 people injured. Indian security agencies also accuse him of overseeing the 2006 train bombings in Mumbai, which saw over 200 casualties.