Azhar is the anti-India chief of Jaish-e-Muhammed
Delhi, Islamabad: Security agencies in India are unsure about the counter action taken by the Pakistani authorities against Masood Azhar, the anti-India leader of Jaish-e-Muhammed, the terrorist group accused of carrying out the attack at a prime Indian airbase in Pathankot. The nature of action will be thedeciding factor of India’s agreement to holding diplomatic foreign secretary-level talks, which have been delayed indefinitely. Hence, investigating agencies have discovered that Maulana Masood Azhar has not been reprimanded at all.
Moreover, intelligence reports also suggest that the three JeM detainees were not taken into custody for any charges related to Pathankot, but because they were found to be possessing information regarding Jaish. These reports portray a scene very much in contradiction to what the Pakistani media is showing, wherein Azhar has been arrested. “There is no word from the Pakistan government on whether an FIR has been registered as regards the Pathankot attack and, if yes, the charges slapped on the possible perpetrators based on its soil. An FIR is the first step towards acknowledging that the hatching of conspiracy and training for the attack took place in Pakistan,” said a senior official, who explained that no official confirmation about the arrest has been made.
However, the Law Minister of the Punjab province, Rana Sanaullah, was later quoted refusing the claims by Indian agencies by a Pakistani newspaper, reiterating that Azhar was taken into ‘protective custody’ and not arrested on charges, an action that can be taken only after his role in the Pathankot attack is proven. Indian agencies then went on to say that the Azhar arrest could be ‘misinformation’ fed to them. “Though Jaish is a banned outfit in Pakistan, it continues to be patronized by the ISI. It would be rather surprising if Azhar is directly held responsible for the Pathankot attack,” stated a senior official.
A collaborative investigation group of representatives from the Pakistan Army, ISI and the FIA were sanctioned to examine the evidence provided by India about the involvement of Pakistan-stationed Jaish leaders in the Pathankot attack. Yet, Indian authorities have received no response regarding the registration of a case or the sections of law under which the perpetrators are to be convicted. Furthermore, Islamabad has claimed that the numbers of the Jaish handlers that the perpetrators contacted from India and were intercepted by alert agencies were not recorded in Pakistan—New Delhi does not agree with this explanation.
Although the status quo in the probe doesn’t look conducive to the dialogue between the foreign secretaries any time soon, India still hopes that the investigation doesn’t follow the path set by the 26/11 probe in the past.
Source: The Times Of India
Tags: india Jaish-e-Muhammed Masood Azhar Pakistan Pathankot
