Haneef is innocent till proven otherwise: Australia

NEW DELHI: Muhammad Haneef, the Indian doctor detained in Australia for his alleged link to the British terror plot, is assumed to be innocent unless proven otherwise, a senior Australian minister said on Wednesday.

"There is an assumption of innocence unless proven otherwise," Australian Defence Minister Brendan Nelson told reporters here.

He admitted that Australia had received a communication from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the visit of an Australian police officer to India to investigate the Indian connection in the terror plot in London and Glasgow.

"We are dealing with this in an appropriate manner," he said. At the same time, the minister refused to say how long Haneef would remain in detention.