D K Kotwal
Indian Government has dropped hints of holding negotiations on Indus Water Treaty though much can not be expected from this talk towards thawing the icy relations between the two neighbours. Majority public opinion is that the two countries for the renewal of the treaty have to enter into a dialogue once in a year, India being a principled state never wants to do something unpleasant that can earn her bad name. Many theories are doing rounds to explain the cause of coming closer of the two nations for the much awaited for means of warming of relation spirit that froze aftermath of the Uri soldier massacre last year. It is assumed that to make talk mood and ambience conducive, Pak appears to have taken the flurry of actions on Lakshar- e-Toiba chief Hafiz Saeed giving impression of movement on an issue that has been a point of contention between India and Pakistan. For the last one month , Saeed who is on the UN security council’s list, has been under ‘Preventive’ detention and ‘house arrest’ along with other four members of the Jamaat- ud-Dawa, an avatar of LeT .All five are on the ‘export control list’ for travel. A few days ago the authorities put Seed on its Anti-terrorism Act. list also, and the licenses of the weapons issued to Saeed have been withdrawn. Details have not been shared. Pakistani officials simply say that they have placed restrictions on the functioning and funding of Saeed’s JuD and its charity arm, Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation. This time Pak’s military and govt. are on the same page, army giving Seed’s detention its full backing by calling it a policy decision in the interest of the nation. While Pak Defence Minister Khwaja Asif told at an international audience at the Munich Security Conference that Saeed was a ‘security threat’ to Pakistan. It would seem that even the Indian govt. has given the action against Saeed a half thumbs up ,with the Ministry of External Affairs calling it a logical first step. Some consider it as a Trump effect and Pakistan out of fear of getting trapped into the list of seven banned nations of American immigration Act, slapped sanctions against Saeed, the main brain behind the Mumbai carnage
As observers feel and know that the action taken against Saeed is not a new one or even the most serious measures taken against him over the past two decades . Since 2001, he has been in and out of detention at least five times and released by the courts a numbers of times. Besides, unlike in 2008 and 2009 when he was detained for 26/11 Mumbai attacks case, this time there has been no first information report registered against him, or any specific reason given. If Pakistan were serious about the UN list, these actions should have been carried in 2008, when Saeed and the JUD were on the list. It is more than likely that Pak’s action is timed for Financial Task Forces official meeting in Paris in near future where a report on Pak’s terror funding record is being presented. Pak Prime Minister may even be attempting to show ‘good faith ‘to both US President Donald Trump and PM Modi by this action, even as he faces domestic pressure to act against terrorists in the wake of slew bombing that occurred recently in Pak, including at the Sewan Shrine in Sindh. It is too early to fully assess what action Saeed means and what signals Pak may be sending to India ?.For New Delhi, steps towards a resumption of bilateral dialogue may be more purposeful than simply gauging which way the wind blows. It is also very strange that even the Pak judiciary does not seem to be against the acts of terrorism. And till today no PIL report is said to have been filed against state sponsored terrorism in Pak apex court by any civil society member.
A highly decorated official not less than the former NSA of Pak -Mahmud Ali drops a bomb in an event at Delhi by disclosing that the 26/11 Mumbai attacks were carried out by a terror group based in Pakistain. However he denied the involvement of Pak govt. and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in this barbaric act in which more than 200 people were killed but he never hesitated to call it a’classic’ example of cross border terrorism. His admission about the involvement of Pak in Mumbai attacks also came in 2009 and he was sacked from the NSA’s post for confirming to the media that Ajmal Kasab ,the lone terrorist captured after the Mumbai attacks , was indeed a Pakistani national. Speaking at the same event ,Mohammad Hanif Atmar Afghanstan’s NSA ,condemned Pak’s policy of ”using one terrorist against another”. He said there was no good or bad terrorist. In Nov. 2008, LeT was the prime suspect behind the Mumbai attacks but denied any part in it. The lone surviving gunman, Ajmal Kasab, captured by Indian authorties admitted that the attacks were planned and executed by the organisation. United States Intelligence sources confirmed that their evidence suggested LeT was behind the attacks.
Now, it is crystal clear that Pak is involved in Mumbai attacks, enough evidences are available on the basis of which Pak must not take much time in handing over Saeed and Zaki to India for further course of action .LeT attacks have increased tensions in the already contentious relationship between India and Pak. Part of the LeT strategy may be to deflect the attention of Pakistan’s military away from the tribal areas and towards its border with India. Attacks in India also aim to exacerbate tensions between India’s Hindu and Muslim communities and help LeT recruitment strategies in India. In the past also India has handed over dossiers of concrete evidences pertaining to Mumbai attacks but Pak says that the proofs made available are not adequate. This clearly shows that Pak intentions are not good and is hell bent not to take any action against dreaded terrorists like Saeed and Azar.
If we go into the meaning of LeT it means an army of righteousness but is it so? Irony is, it is an army of destruction and killers. This organization was floated in 1987 with the funding of Osma bin Ladan. This terrorist organization has been banned by the United States ,the United Kingdom, the European Union ,Russia and Ausralia. Though Pakistan banned it formally but it still continues to work in the guise of JUD Jamat Ud Dawah—-the political wing of the group with malicious objectives of establishing ‘Islamic State’in South Asia and so called liberation of Muslims from an integral part of India. The ISI Inter- Services Intelligence of Pakistan is the life line of the organisation.It has a net work of camps spread over POK and around Lahore being funded by Pakistani immigrated communities in ‘Persian Gulf’ and United kingdom, Islamic NGOS and Pakistani businessmen and even Kashmiri people. According to US intelligence, the LeT has a military budget of more than $ 5 million by 2009. This organization has wreaked havoc upon the humanity by carrying out the following horrible incidents : Wandhama massacre——23 Kashmiri Pandits killed (1998). In March 2000 Chittisnghpura massacre-35 Sikhs were killed.In 2000 terrorist attack on Red Fort .Kaluchak massacre resulted in the killing of 31 people. Delhi bombing had 60 killings and Doda massacre had 34 Hindus killed. Behind all these killings Saeed brain worked.
As of now, this is the biggest reason for Pakistan to handover Saeed to India as he is a dreaded terrorist involved in destabilization of India. The proposed Indo-Pak talk upon Indus Water Treaty is a welcome step, though much more positive results are unexpected from it.
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