Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday blamed Pakistan for the bail granted to Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, saying there might be some shortcomings on the part of the prosecution in taking forward the case.
Terming the bail to Lakhvi as ‘very unfortunate’ as it came just two days after the terror attack in Peshawar where over 130 schoolchildren were killed, he hoped that the Pakistan government will approach a higher court against the lower court order and ensure its cancellation.
"There might be some shortcomings on the part of the Pakistan government somewhere or could be due to some other reasons (the bail was granted)," he said at a hurriedly-called press briefing, hours after a Pakistani court gave bail to LeT operations commander Lakhvi, currently lodged at a jail.
According to Lakhvi's counsel advocate Raja Rizwan Abbasi, bail was granted as ‘evidence against Lakhvi was deficient’.
Singh said India had pursued the Mumbai attacks case meticulously and that resulted in fast trial and delivery of justice to the case with the hanging of one of the terrorists Ajmal Kasab.
"But it is not happening in Pakistan. We have given enough evidence against the terrorists," he said. Singh said that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had asserted that operations against terror elements will continue in his country till terrorism ends.
"So, I hope that the Pakistan government will appeal in a higher court so that Lakhvi's bail is cancelled," he said. The home minister also demanded that India's most wanted terrorists, including Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Sayeed, should be handed over to it.
"Pakistan should hand over our most wanted terrorists. This has been our continuous stand," he said. Singh said he would speak to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj so that New Delhi takes up the issue with Islamabad strongly.
Asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's conversation with his Pakistani counterpart in the aftermath of the Peshawar incident, he said Modi did whatever a prime minister should do after such a tragedy.
"Not only people of Pakistan, but people of India are equally hurt over the killings of so many innocent children," he said. Replying a question about Hafiz Sayeed's threat to India, Singh said "India is not scared of any threat".
Meanwhile, public prosecutor in the Mumbai terror attack case Ujjwal Nikam on Thursday termed as ‘setback’ a Pakistan court's order releasing on bail top Lashkar-e-Tayiba commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi in the 26/11 case and asked Pakistani authorities to ensure it is cancelled.
"It is really a big setback as with Lakhvi on bail prosecution witnesses will not like to come forward and give evidence," he said reacting to a Pakistani Anti-Terrorism court granting bail to the LeT operations commander.
Lakhvi is among the seven Pakistani nationals accused of planning and abetting the brazen terror attack in Mumbai on November 26, 2008 that left 166 dead, including foreigners.
"If Pakistan wants to fight terrorism, they should fight terrorism emanating from inside first of all because this problem has been cropping up there for a long time. The Peshawar incident shook the world," he said.
"The Pakistani authorities should move a higher court for cancellation of the bail because Hafiz Saeed (LeT founder) and Lakhvi are the real terrorists (behind the Mumbai attack)," he said.
Nikam, who had gone to Pakistan to monitor the progress of the trial in the 26/11 case, recalled a prosecutor in the case had been shot dead after his visit. Gunmen riding a motorcycle had shot dead senior prosecutor in the 26/11 and Benazir Bhutto assassination cases, Chaudhry Zulfizar Ali, in the busy commercial area of Karachi Company in Islamadad last year.
"My counterpart in Pakistan who was public prosecutor trying this case was shot dead after our visit to Islamabad. Pakistani authorities should try and get Lakhvi's bail cancelled otherwise the witnesses will not have confidence in their minds," Nikam said.
Rejecting claims by defence lawyers in Pakistan that there was no evidence of Lakhvi's involvement in the 26/11 carnage, Nikam said, "If they don't have evidence, why was he not released earlier? The Government of India has provided enough evidence (to Pakistan)."
"There is overwhelming evidence against Lakhvi. Had there been no evidence, he would have been released earlier. I and senior Indian government officials had visited Islamabad and we pointed out voluminous evidence against Lakhvi," Nikam said.
"In spite of this, Lakhvi had not been charged with criminal conspiracy. Pakistan did not take positive steps against all the offenders for criminal conspiracy... I want to know why ?" he asked.
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