India welcomes Pak response on 26/11 attacks

India has welcomed Pakistan’s long-awaited response to the dossier on Mumbai terror attacks, after months of denial, evasion and obfuscation, and assured Islamabad that India will share whatever it can after examining the issues raised by it.

Hours after Pakistan informed officially to Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad, Satyabrata Pal, on Thursday about Pakistan’s response to Indian dossier of evidence, the ministry of external affairs issued a statement saying India will follow the process of action initiated by Pakistan as it is keen to ensure the perpetrators of the crime are brought to justice.

External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, who discussed Pakistan's response with the Home Minister, P Chidambaram and the Defence Minister, A K Antony, said India is examining the reports received from Islamabad and will get back to it with more information after going through its queries.

“Pakistan’s response is a positive development, and we will share whatever we can with the neighbouring country,” Mukherjee said, “It remains India’s goal to bring the perpetrators of the terrorist attacks on Mumbai to book and to follow this process through to the end. We would also expect that Pakistan take credible steps to dismantle the terror infrastructure on its soil.”

Terming the Mumbai attacks on 26/11 as the “most gruesome” that needs to be tackled in a “resolute manner”, Mukherjee said India will spare no effort to deal with terrorists and insurgent groups operating from neighbouring countries, and are determined to abolish terrorism sponsored from across the border with all the means at our command.

Addressing the media, Chidambaram said: “Our initial response is that it is a positive development.” He said that External Affairs Minister would make a statement Friday on Pakistan’s response.

Earlier in the day, yielding under international pressure, Pakistan on Thursday admitted for the first time that not full but some part of the Mumbai attacks conspiracy was hatched on its soil.

In a 55-minute-long press conference, Pakistan’s Interior Ministry Chief, Rehman Malik, confirmed that “some part of conspiracy has taken place in Pakistan”. He said that criminal cases had been opened against nine suspects on charges of “abetting, conspiracy and facilitation” of a terrorist act.

He said six of them were already in custody, including LeT operatives Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Zarar Shah, and a person who sent an e-mail claiming responsibility for the attacks. Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone Pakistani terrorist in the Indian custody, is one of those named in the FIR.

On the contrary, Malik fired 30 odd-questions at the Indian government, such as details of fingerprints of the 10 gunmen, their intercepted phone conversations with their handlers and the DNA of lone surviving terrorist Ajmal Kasab, saying answers to them were needed by Islamabad to complete a credible probe from its end.

He said that Pakistan wanted Kasab’s national identity card, electronic and digital diaries seized and the confessional statement made by him during interrogation and details of who helped in refuelling of one of the three boats used by terrorists. He pressed for more evidence would need from India to secure convictions.