Terror hurting Pak too, hope they realise and curb jihadis: PM

From V Mohan Narayan
On Board PM's Special Aircraft
(PTI) - Sending amessage to Pakistan in the wake of the Karachi attack, Indian
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said its leadership
should realise that the terror machine there was "equally
hurting" them and must take more effective action against
jehadi groups targeting India.
He asserted that terrorism as an instrument of state
policy of Pakistan was "simply not acceptable to people in the
civilised world" and said India will use every possible
opportunity to convince them about it.
"As Pakistan's neighbour, we have great worries about
the terror machine that is still intact in Pakistan. We would
like Pakistan to take much more effective action to curb the
activities of those Jehadi groups which particularly target a
country, like India," Singh told reporters while returning
from his six-day visit to Ethiopia and Tanzania.
Apparently referring to the recent terror attack on
Pakistan navy airbase in Karachi, he said: "The more I see of
what is happening in Pakistan the more I am convinced that
Pakistan's leadership must now wake up, and must recognise
that the terror machine they have or at least some elements in
the country patronise, is working not to anybody's advantage."
On 26/11 attacks probe in Pakistan, he said, "We must
convince Pakistan that it is in their own interest that they
must help us in tackling the problem of terror in our region.
"That those Jehadi groups that target India, as a
destination for their terror, they must be effectively curbed
and dealt with. That is an ongoing process and at every
opportunity that we have, we should continue to impress on
Pakistan."
He hoped Pakistan would "recognise that this monster
of terrorism which they unleashed at one time, is hurting them
as much as it can hurt our country."
Asked about the deposition of David Headley
implicating Pak's spy agency ISI (Inter Service Intelligence)
in the Mumbai attacks, Singh said, "it did not reveal anything
new".
New Delhi for long has held that ISI has a direct role
in the Mumbai attacks, a charge flatly denied by Pakistan.
"The trial of David Headley has not brought out
anything new that we did not know. The trial is still on," the
Prime Minister said in his first comments after Headley's
ongoing deposition in the US court.
"We will study it, when the trial is completed. It
does not revealed anything fresh that we did not know before,"
he said.
Singh said there was also global concern about
terrorism and the world has seen, as never before that the
epicentre of terror is in India's neighbourhood.
He said countries appreciate India's point and "it
should be our effort to mobilise world opinion to ensure that
this terror machinery which operates in our neighbourhood in
Pakistan is brought under effective control."
Asked about the recent terror strike in Mehran
military base in Karachi, the Prime Minister said: "I have
always maintained that a strong, stable and peaceful Pakistan
is in the interest of our country. Therefore, the events do
worry us," he said.
Pakistan, he said, needs to be convinced that it is in
their own interest that they must help India in tackling
terror in the region.
To another question, Singh made it clear that a visit
to Pakistan, which he has agreed in principle, is unlikely in
the near future.
"I have not made up my mind on that," he said, adding,
"I always believe that good relations between India and its
neighbours are desirable and indeed essential for us in South
Asia to realise our development ambition."