India demands action from Pakistan against terrorists

Sharm-el-Sheikh Jul 14 (PTI) India Tuesday demanded a
"visual response" and undertaking from Pakistan on bringing
the perpetrators of Mumbai terror attacks to justice as
officials and leaders of the two countries prepare to meet
here to review Islamabad's actions on its promises.

India's Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon will meet
his Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir ahead of the parleys
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will have with his counterpart
Yousuf Raza Gilani on Thursday morning on the sidelines of the
NAM Summit.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told reporters
here that India would like a "visible response" from Pakistan
whose commitment is to bring to justice the perpetrators of
Mumbai attacks and the earlier attack on the Indian embassy in
Kabul.
"I think Pakistan should give us an undertaking that
they will give not not let their soil to be used for terrorist
activities directed against India," he said.

Menon, who is accompanying Singh on his trip to Paris
and from there to this Egyptian sea resort for the NAM Summit,
will meet with Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir and prepare
the basis for the prime ministers' meeting.

The officials will report to their principals on their
discussions which India wants focused on Pakistan's action
against the terrorists involved in the Mumbai attacks.

The discussions are also expected to cover the
flip-flop in Pakistan over the arrest and release of
Jamaat-ud-Dawaah leader Hafiz Mohammed Sayeed and the
withdrawal of petitions challenging his release from the
Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has handed over a fresh dossier
on its probe into the Mumbai terror attacks to India. The
dossier, handed over to the Indian High Commission officials
in Islamabad on Saturday, identifies 12 new suspects and gives
an update on Pakistan's investigations into the November 26
attacks, informed sources said.

After Singh's disclosure on Saturday that ISI chief
has met some officials of the Indian High Commission in
Islamabad, speculation has been rife about the powerful spy
agency's influence in the process of talks.

The Indian side is unwilling to hazard a guess on
whether ISI will be part of the talks, saying it amounts to
jumping several steps.

Singh, who will arrive here Tuesday night from Paris,
hopes to get from Gilani a categoric commitment that the
Mumbai terror accused would be quickly brought to justice and
Pakistan's soil will not be used for terror acts against
India.

The Singh-Gilani meeting will be preceded by talks
between Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and his Pakistani
counterpart Salman Bashir, who will have the first meeting
Tuesday and later report to their respective leaders.

Though the Indian side is entering the talks on a note
of caution, it is not pre-judging Pakistan's intention. The
sources said India has taken note of President Asif Ali
Zardari's willingness to discuss the issue of terrorism during
his talks with Singh in Russia last month.

New Delhi has also acknowledged that Pakistan has
taken "some steps" in this direction. "But what they amount
to, we have to see," they said.

While India has made it clear that Pakistan should
take steps to dismantle terror infrastructure and stop terror
acts directed against it, New Delhi feels laying down
deadlines, markers for this purpose is not pragmatic.

The Indian side feels it is premature at this stage to
speculate on resumption of the peace process, stalled since
the Mumbai attacks.

The Indian side is of the view that at this stage it
can neither say yes or no to starting the Composite Dialogue
with Pakistan.

India is disappointed that eight months have passed
since the Mumbai strikes and movement from the Pakistani side
in prosecuting the accused is slow and frustrating, the
sources said.

The case against one of the principal accused Zakiur
Rehman Lakhvi, the LeT operations commander, has been deferred
for the third time till July 18 because a judge has not been
appointed, the sources pointed out.

New Delhi has been unhappy over the release of Mumbai
attack mastermind Hafiz Mohammed Saeed, LeT founder and the
chief of JuD, following a Lahore High Court order on June 2.

India sees it as a serious issue and is of the strong
view that Pakistan is obliged to catch anyone who incites
errorism.
Gilani Monday took stock of the country's probe
into the Mumbai terror attacks ahead of the crucial meeting.

He met Interior Minister Rehman Malik, who briefed him
about the status of the inquiry into the attacks that killed
nearly 183 people in November last year. PTI VMN
pmr
NNNN





The information contained in this electronic message and any attachments to this
message are intended for the exclusive
use of the addressee(s) and may contain proprietary, confidential or privileged
information. If you are not the intended
recipient, you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please
notify the sender immediately and destroy
all copies of this message and any attachments contained in it.