After Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said Maulana Masood Azhar has been taken under “protective custody”, the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) on Thursday countered the claims and said its chief was never arrested.
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Last night, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup had said India had not received any confirmation on media reports of the detention of Azhar, who is believed to be the mastermind of the Pathankot terror attack.
Defence expert Qamar Agha on Thursday said Pakistan should officially inform the Indian Government about Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar’s detention and clarify the grounds on which he has been detained. “We have been assured by the Indian government that it would take all the necessary steps for the security of the PIA offices in India”, the spokesman said.
He also said India was looking forward to a possible visit by a team of Pakistani investigating agencies to probe the attack on the air base.
“The foreign secretary spoke to his Pakistani counterpart and they agreed to reschedule talks in the near future”, he said, adding that the talks would be held “soon”.
Earlier today, the Pakistani Foreign Office announced that talks between the foreign secretaries will not take place on January 15 (Friday) as earlier scheduled.
The spokesman noted that considerable progress had been made into the investigation into the alleged links of Pakistani terrorists to the attack on the IAF base.
Government officials also said there was no information whether a criminal case was registered against JeM and its members including Masood Azhar. Meanwhile, Islamabad is said to be planning to set up a team for Pathankot attack’s probe in an attempt to pacify with India.
According to reports, Azhar is in custody along with close aids and are kept in an undisclosed location.
While talking to media Swarup said that the talks have been postponed with mutual consent.
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The offices had reportedly been sealed in Bahwalnagar, Bahawalpur, Multan and Muzafargarh cities and the suspected members of the group were also held, top officials briefed Sharif.
