Acknowledging Mohammed Ajmal Amir as its citizen is the first positive step taken by Pakistan since the Mumbai carnage.
Acknowledging Mohammed Ajmal Amir as its citizen is the first positive step taken by Pakistan since the Mumbai carnage. Whether this will lead to further co operation in tracking down the terrorists and destroying their base will depend on how prime minister Manmohan Singh's government takes it from here.
India had so far launched an effective diplomatic campaign and got the international community to put pressure on Pakistan. President Asif Ali Zardari's weak civilian government is under scrutiny and he needs to deliver. Every country in the world is asking Pakistan to act but India could spoil it all by pitching it too high and triggering ultra nationalist sentiments.
This is not the time to be shrill but to push for co-operation on terrorism which affects both neighbours. India is aware that the civilian government in Pakistan is not in full control and that the Army and the ISI also dictate terms.
"This seems like the first step in co-operation from Islamabad. Its probably done due to intense international pressure. It is time for South Block to appreciate the move and ask for more co operation from the government. It will not harm our cause if we keep in mind the situation in Pakistan,'' said analyst SD Muni, a long time Pakistan watcher.
The encouraging news is Mahmud Ali Durrani's assertion that he had got the go ahead from the security establishment on Ajmal. So is ISI chief Pasha’s interview where he said terrorism and not India is the enemy.
But foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee seems in no mood to relent. Speaking in Chennai on Thursday he said: “Our job has been vastly facilitated by virtue of the fact that we have one of the terrorists in physical custody. He has told us where he comes from, where he has received military and arms training, where his handlers are located,” he added. “Despite this, we have seen a flip-flop in the reaction of the government in Islamabad.”
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