File photo: 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi. (Press Trust of India)
As a court in Islamabad ordered the release of Lashkar terrorist Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, India today said it is the responsibility of Pakistan to keep him behind bars as there is overwhelming evidence of his role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
"It is the responsibility of the Pakistan government to take all legal measures to ensure that Lakhvi does not come out of jail," a Home Ministry spokesperson said in New Delhi.
The strong reaction came within hours of the Islamabad High Court declaring the detention order of the LeT operations commander Lakhvi as void, who was also the 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind.
"The overwhelming evidence against Lakhvi regarding his role in the criminal conspiracy leading to the Mumbai attack has not been properly presented in the Pakistani court by the Pakistani agencies. This should be ensured without delay," the spokesperson said.
Justice Noorul Haq accepted 55-year-old Lakhvi's appeal filed against his third time detention orders and ordered his immediate release.
Lakhvi and six others - Abdul Wajid, Mazhar Iqbal, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jameel Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younis Anjum - have been charged with planning and executing the Mumbai attacks in November, 2008 that left 166 people dead.