Newly-appointed spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Randhir Jaiswal has on Thursday (January 4) once again confirmed that India has sent an extradition request to Pakistan on 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed. India has also provided necessary supporting documents to Pakistan while seeking extradition of the founder of the terror organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). However, unfortunately, Pakistan as anticipated is reluctant to accede to India’s request. Islamabad has rejected the request from New Delhi, stating that the two countries had no bilateral treaty to address such matters.
Pakistan’ refusal to extradite Hafiz Saeed to India reaffirms its image as a country which supports and defends terrorists who carry out anti-India operations from the territory under Islamabad’s control.
Indian diplomats are of the view, which is apt also, that the ‘absence of a treaty cannot be any hindrance in the collective global fight against terrorism’. If Pakistan is really serious in eradicating terrorists from its soil as it keeps claiming at the forums such as FATF and the United Nations, it must immediately accept India’s request to hand over Hafiz Saeed so that the Mumbai attack mastermind could face trial here and probe could be taken to the logical conclusion.
Any country offering technical issues as an excuse to defend terror elements should be called out by the international community without any hitch. This is perhaps India’s argument in favour of its case seeking Hafiz Saeed’s extradition for trial against him.
The global community and the United Nations must take note of the development, and ask Pakistan to respond to India’s request on Hafiz Saeed’s extradition in a positive manner.
International community must take steps to mount pressure on Pakistan for prompt action in terms of extradition of Saeed who is a designated terrorist wanted in India for several terror attacks including the 2008 assault on Mumbai. The major powers of the world including the United States and European nations should convey a clear-cut message to Pakistan that its failure to accede to India’s request for extraditing Hafiz Saeed would be interpreted that Islamabad continues to give patronage to the mastermind of Mumbai attacks.
Its failure to give a positive response on India’s request will further cement the belief that Pakistan continues to be a safe haven for terror groups like LeT and JeM with protection being given actively by Islamabad-based government agencies such as ISI. Already, Saeed’s son Talha’s plan to contest February’s general election is an endorsement of India’s stand that mainstreaming of terrorist groups is a state policy in Pakistan.
India had designated Talha as a terrorist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in 2022. The fact that the international community is fully aware of is that Hafiz Saeed is himself a UN-proscribed terrorist who has a $10 mn bounty on him by the US. Despite being designated a terrorist by the UN and EU in the 2000s, Saeed was neither charged nor extradited over nearly two decades. Saeed was designated as a terrorist by the United Nations Security Council in December 2008.
In fact, by officially seeking Saeed’s extradition, India is also complying with a court’s order earlier calling for the LeT chief to be either prosecuted in Pakistan or to be sent to India to face justice. Pakistan used to be reluctant to punish Saeed despite truckloads of evidence provided by India establishing his role in Mumbai terror attacks. It was only after immense pressure from India, West, US and FATF that Saeed was jailed by a Pakistani court for 31 years in 2022 in connection with terrorism financing.
India has again reportedly shared clinching evidence to establish that Saeed was the key conspirator of the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai. But Pakistan is deliberately closing its eyes to the evidence. It is rather hiding behind the technical excuse that India and Pakistan do not have an extradition treaty. But nothing stops Pakistan from cooperating with India in the investigation of the Mumbai terror attacks, and questioning Hafiz Saeed will be a key part of the probe process. Pakistan, which claims to be fighting terror, must come forward and hand over Saeed to India to facilitate the investigation.
India has in the past sent a letter rogatory to Pakistan for assistance in investigation. If New Delhi has again asked Pakistan in a formal communication to extradite Saeed to India, it has reminded Islamabad of the need to strengthen the collective global fight against the menace of terrorism.
The international community and the global forums such as the United Nations, FATF, etc. must take note of these facts and ensure that Pakistan sends Saeed to India so that perpetrators of the Mumbai attack could be punished for what they have done.
T. BRAJESH