New Delhi: Union home minister Rajnath Singh said in his statement that a red-corner notice issued by Interpol was pending against Dawood since 1996 and a UN Security Council’s special notice against him was also pending since 2006. He added that Pakistan was bound by international obligations to locate and extradite him. Pakistan’s high commissioner Abdul Basit, speaking in Lucknow, said, however, Dawood was not in Pakistan.
“Iske baare mein yahi keh sakta hun ki wo ‘sahab’ Pakistan mein nahi hain. Iss se zyada kya kahun? (I can only say ‘Sahab’ is not in Pakistan. I can’t say anything more),” the diplomat said during a media interaction at Lucknow’s UP Press Club.
Mr Basit also denied reports that the Pakistan government was ‘soft’ on those who created terror in India. “Pakistan has suffered the maximum due to terrorism and our government is determined to control it. Our economy has suffered an immense loss after the 9/11 attack in the US. It is wrong to say that Hafiz Saeed, (the alleged mastermind of Mumbai attack) is roaming free because of the Pakistan government. The matter is in court and he is on bail. We had arrested seven persons accused of Mumbai attacks and the trial is on. If you do not trust our judicial system it won’t help,” he told reporters.
He also denied that Pakistan was blocking bilateral talks and said that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had taken a ‘huge step’ by coming to India to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing in ceremony.
“It was a peaceful development, but the momentum could not be sustained. We are waiting for India to get ready for talks,” he said.
Talking about the Kashmir issue, the Pak official said that it was not a new issue and had been debated upon since Partition.
“Let the people of Kashmir decide what they want. Elections cannot be a substitute for plebiscite. Any solution must be acceptable to the people,” he stated.
