U-turn? Day after Nawaz Sharif’s promise, Pakistan stalls 26/11 attack probe

Lahore: Pakistan did a U-turn on Sunday, stating that voice samples of LeT operations commander and Mumbai attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi is not likely to be provided, two days after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif gave a commitment to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.

Prosecution team’s chief Chaudhry Azhar said that four years ago, a Rawalpindi court handling the Mumbai terror attack case had dismissed an application for obtaining voice samples of Lakhvi on the ground that no such law exists in the country that allows obtaining of voice samples of an accused.

Mr Azhar said that the Pakistan government would not file a fresh petition in the anti-terrorism court requesting for obtaining voice samples of Lakhvi in the 26/11 case. Lakhvi is presently out of bail for lack of evidence.

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“The issue is over. We had filed an application in the trial court in 2011, seeking voice samples of Lakhvi, but the judge (Malik Akram Awan) had dismissed it on the ground that no such law exists that allows obtaining of voice samples of an accused. There is no such law even in India and the USA. Such a law can be introduced only through the Pakistani parliament,” Mr Azhar said.

Mr Modi and Mr Sharif at their meeting in Russian city of Ufa on Friday agreed to discuss ways and means to expedite the Mumbai case trial (in Pakistan), including additional information like providing voice samples.

Read: Modi-Sharif meet gets mix response from Pakistan's parties, media

But Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid said the government has no intention of taking the issue to the parliament.

“Pakistan has included the Mumbai issue in the joint statement because we wanted India to provide us ‘solid evidence’ against the accused for their prosecution,” Rashid said, expressing his government’s strong resolve against terrorism.