26/11: India voices outrage over likely Lakhvi release, summons Pakistan envoy

Days after the brutal cold-blooded massacre of children in Peshawar by Taliban militants, Pakistan does not seem to have learnt the right lessons from the numbing tragedy. The schizophrenia underlying Pakistan’s duplicity on terrorism was again manifested when the Islamabad High Court December 29 issued an interim order to cancel detention notification of the 2008 Mumbai terror accused Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, paving the way for his release out of jail. The 26/11 accused, however, can’t be free unless the order is signed by a judge.

India has rightfully reacted with outrage at Islamabad’s seeming nonchalance towards the 26/11 trial and the terror operatives targeting India in general.

India’s Foreign Secretary summoned Pakistan’s High Commissioner Abdul Basit December 29 and conveyed strong concern “at the lack of effective action by Pakistan’s Prosecuting authorities after the Anti-Terrorism-Court ordered the release of internationally designated terrorist Zakir ur Rehman Lakhvi, whose involvement in the Mumbai terror attack is well known.”

“It was once again conveyed that we expect the government of Pakistan to abide by the commitment conveyed to us, including at the highest level, that expeditious steps would be taken to bring all those responsible for the heinous acts of terrorism in Mumbai to justice,” said the external affairs ministry in a statement.

The foreign secretary also conveyed that it “was extremely disturbing that despite the assurances India been receiving over the last six years, and the recent tragedies in Pakistan, there seems to be no end in sight to Pakistan remaining a safe-haven for well-known terror groups.”

In the aftermath of the Peshawar massacre engineered by the Tehrik-e-Taliban militants, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had vowed to eliminate every single terrorist from the Pakistani soil. But this much-trumpeted vow seems to exempt those terrorists and militant groups who target India and plots against Asia’s third largest economy.

It’s one of the region’s worst-kept secrets that Pakistan’s military establishment has had used terrorism as an instrument of state policy against India. In this devious manipulation of the terror machinery against India, some terror groups, patronised by the military-ISI establishment, have turned into Frankenstein’s monster and have been targeting Pakistan with fanatical zeal.

It’s time Pakistan woke up and deliver on the Mumbai justice if it wants enduring peace with India and be cleansed of the scourge of terror that is ravaging its own people with increasing vehemence.

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