Thaindian News

Islamabad, Sep 22 (IANS) Pakistan Tuesday confirmed that Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, had been arrested, with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani saying the evidence against him would decide what action needs to be taken.
“The interior ministry can tell you the actual position but I believe he is in custody. A decision on his case will be taken on the basis of evidence (against him),” Gilani told reporters in Multan.

After six dossiers India gave and months of pressure from New Delhi and Washington, the Pakistani police Monday put Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Saeed under house arrest with a posse of police personnel ringing his residence in Lahore. The police also barred Saeed from leading Eid prayers on grounds of “security concerns”.

Also on Monday, Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram demanded that Saeed be interrogated as all evidence against him was “on Pakistani soil”.

“Even if it is a face saving technique, I have no objection. My demand is that now that he has been arrested, he should be interrogated for his role in the 26/11 incidents,” Chidambaram told reporters on the sidelines of a function in Chennai.

“Evidence is on Pakistani soil. When Pakistan says ‘give us evidence’, evidence is not on Indian soil. All the evidence against Hafiz Saeed is on Pakistani soil,” the home minister said.

Following the action against Saeed, it was announced Monday that Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna will hold talks with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi in New York Sep 27 to review Pakistan’s action against the 26/11 terrorists.

The foreign ministers’ meeting will be preceded by talks between India’s Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir in New York Sep 26 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session.