New Delhi:
On the second anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, External Affairs Minister, SM Krishna called upon Pakistan to punish the perpetrators of the attacks. He said Pakistan must ensure speedy justice.
"On the second anniversary of the barbaric terrorist attack in Mumbai, the nation pays respectful homage to its sons and daughters and foreign guests, whose innocent lives were cruelly snuffed out. The day is a stark reminder that no cause can ever justify terror, either by state or non-sate actors," said SM Krishna, External Affairs Minister.
Yesterday, in a strongly-worded diplomatic note, India said "substantive and verifiable" progress has not been made in the probe into Mumbai terror attacks cases in Pakistan.
Asking Islamabad to fulfill its "obligation and commitment" to bring to justice the perpetrators of the 26/11 carnage, India regretted that no feedback has been received on several issues raised by New Delhi.
This included information on the names of seven persons involved in the attacks given by Home Minister P Chidambaram during his meeting with his Pakistani counterpart in June in Islamabad, government sources said.
The names of seven "handlers" involved in the 26/11 included that of two officers in the Pakistani Army.
"Lack of tangible progress in delivering on this vital commitment is increasingly being viewed in the Indian public opinion as dilatory and lacking in seriousness," a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said.
The sources said New Delhi also reminded Islamabad that there has been no feedback from Pakistan on its request for voice samples of Pakistan-based "handlers" of the 10 terrorists who attacked Mumbai on November 26, 2008 in which 166 people were killed.
"It is a matter of regret," it said. India has been demanding voice samples of the handlers whose conversations were intercepted while the attack had unfolded as this will help in the investigations into the Mumbai terror attacks.
India also pointed to "lack of progress" in the trial of seven Lashker-e-Toiba operatives in Pakistan who were arrested in connection with the 26/11 attacks, sources said.
It said government has conveyed to Pakistan its regret that substantive and verifiable progress has not been made on bringing all the perpetrators and masterminds of the heinous attacks to justice.
And this happened despite the repeated assurances given by Pakistans leadership at the highest level and the extensive cooperation extended by India in connection with the ongoing trial and investigation in Pakistan on the Mumbai terrorist attacks, it said.
"India has once again called upon Pakistan to fulfill its stated commitment to bring all the perpetrators of the Mumbai terrorist attacks to justice and unravel the larger conspiracy behind the attacks, the statement said.
A time-bound fulfillment of its stated commitments by Pakistan would not only go a long way towards building trust and confidence between the two countries but would also be a reflection of Pakistan's commitment to combat terrorism comprehensively, it said. (With PTI inputs)