Angry India hits back after Pak says Saeed free to roam

After Pakistan on Monday said that there was no case against terrorist Hafiz Saeed and that he is free to roam in the country of which he’s a citizen, New Delhi hit out at Islamabad saying that it considers the Jammat-ud-Dawa chief as mastermind of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

‘Our views on Hafiz Saeed are very clear. To us, he is the evil mastermind of the attacks on Mumbai and one of the accused in an Indian court for killings on streets of Mumbai. We have repeatedly asked Pakistan that he should be apprehended and taken through normal judicial process,’ said the external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin. ‘He has never been arrested on account of 26/11. Therefore, he is only free because he is a Pakistani citizen,’ added Akbaruddin.

Asked about Pakistan’s stand that there was not enough evidence to prove his involvement, the MEA spokesperson said, ‘99 per cent evidence in this case is in Pakistan. That is because the entire conspiracy was hatched in Pakistan. The planning for this dastardly act was done in Pakistan. The financing for this act was undertaken in Pakistan and people involved who were involved in this were from Pakistan. Therefore, it has always been our view that it devolves on Pakistan that it ensures that criminals like Hafiz Saeed were brought to book and justice was delivered in the instance of crime in Mumbai.’ Pak high commissioner to India, Abdul Basit had said, ‘Hafiz Saeed is a Pakistani national so he is free to roam around.’