India fumes as Pak shrugs off Jundal 'insinuation'
http://m.timesofindia.com/PDATOI/articleshow/14697171.cms
NEW DELHI: Pakistan on Thursday defiantly pushed aside 26/11 mastermind Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal's disclosure about the support of its official agencies for the terror attack, drawing a terse reminder from India that efforts for improved bilateral ties cannot go very far if the perpetrators of the Mumbai carnage remained unpunished. Action against the killers would be the biggest CBM, New Delhi stressed.
Visiting Pakistani foreign secretary Jalil Jilani infuriated the political establishment here when he dismissed as "insinuation" India's concern, based on the revelations made by Jundal, about the complicity of Pakistani state actors in the Mumbai attack. "I would very strongly reject any insinuation of any involvement of any state agency in acts of terrorism in India," Jilani said.
The remark of Jilani, who while posted as acting High Commissioner to India was declared persona non- grata for funding secessionists in Jammu and Kashmir, came at a press conference he addressed along with his Indian counterpart Ranjan Mathai. It was seen as Islamabad's brazen disregard of Jundal's acknowledgment about Pakistan's official agencies, and pointed to the gap between the two countries on New Delhi's concern about terrorism.
According to sources, during his meeting with foreign minister S M Krishna in the evening, Jilani defended the inaction against the choreographers of 26/11 by saying that the judiciary had made it difficult to act without enough evidence.
Addressing the joint press conference, Mathai said that Jundal's statements had aggravated India's worries about terrorism. "The ongoing interrogation of Abu Jundal has now added urgency to this matter," Mathai said . "I emphasized that terrorism is the biggest threat to peace and security in the region and that bringing the guilty to justice in the Mumbai terror attacks would be the biggest confidence-building measure of all," Mathai said briefing reporters of his deliberations with Jilani.
During the talks, Mathai had referred to Union home minister P Chidambaram's statement, based on Jundal's admissions, about the participation of Pakistan's official agencies in the 26/11 plot. The home minister had said that the control room equipped with modern communication facilities from where the masterminds directed Ajmal Kasab and other Mumbai attackers, could not have been set up without the support of official agencies.
Mathai also read out from Jundal's interrogation report pointing to the involvement of Pakistani state actors in the 26/11 conspiracy.
However, this failed to move Jilani out of denial mode. At the press conference, Jilani offered a joint probe into the attacks and to plug any gap in investigations in the "spirit of cooperation''; both offers were rejected by top Indian officials as meaningless gestures. The joint statement issued after the talks, which lasted over two days, made no mention of Mumbai attacks, let alone instil some life into the ongoing Mumbai trial in Pakistan.
The reaction from the political class was immediate and severe. "Rejecting India's contention as insinuation is by no stretch of imagination a constructive approach that can broaden and deepen Indo-Pak relations," said Congress's Manish Tewari. "There is difference of heaven and hell between an insinuation and an averment based on evidence".
Senior BJP leader and former finance minister Yashwant Sinha also attacked Jilani. "He has displayed the typical Pakistani attitude of denying truth and no amount of evidence can satisfy them. They don't understand this language," said Sinha.
While no formal dossier on Jundal was shared with the Pakistanis during the talks between foreign secretaries, Mathai admitted that he did share "some information'' about the Mumbai attack accused recently deported from Saudi Arabia. He said India would continue to pursue the matter with determination to its logical conclusion.
Jilani said Pakistan would investigate whatever evidence India comes up with. While describing terrorism as a common enemy, the Pakistan foreign secretary said neither side was going to benefit by trading blame. "We must take steps now to move from adversarial relations towards a positive narrative,'' he added.
Foreign minister S M Krishna did announce after the talks that he would travel to Pakistan in the first half of September, ahead of the UNGA meet. He was earlier scheduled to travel to Pakistan on July 19, but it was postponed after the announcement of the presidential election on the same day.
The issue of peace and security including CBMs was discussed, as Mathai put it, in a comprehensive manner. Both sides emphasized the need to promote greater trust and mutual understanding through constructive dialogue and to fight and eliminate terrorism. They also had a comprehensive exchange of views on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir and agreed to continue discussions in a purposeful and forward looking manner "with a view to finding a peaceful solution by narrowing divergences and building convergences".
"Both sides underlined the importance of greater people to people contacts and friendly exchanges in building a relationship of trust and friendship between the two countries,'' said Mathai. He described the forward movement on economic and commercial cooperation between India and Pakistan as a welcome development.
India, Pakistan discuss resuming cricket ties
While India and Pakistan on Thursday agreed to increase contact in sports, as mentioned in the joint statement, foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai left it to the cricket boards of the two countries to take a call on resuming cricketing ties. He admitted that such a resumption would involve security issues.
"As for the resumption of cricketing ties, this is really a matter for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Pakistan Cricket Board,'' said Mathai.
His counterpart Jalil Jilani said he had put forward certain suggestions for the revival of cricketing ties between the two countries during his meeting with Mathai. ``And I think we will continue with this positive trajectory that we have adopted over the years in moving forward in our relations,'' he added.