In the terror attack on Pathankot Air Force base that began on January 2, six militants were also eliminated in an operation that lasted four days.
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The crackdown in Punjab province follows the arrests of several Jaish members this week, including leader Maulana Masood Azhar. “We look forward to the visit of the Pakistani SIT and our investigative agencies will extend all necessary cooperation to bring the perpetrators of this attack to justice”, he said.
Further explaining what he has announced, Vikas Swarup said that decision to defer the talks has been taken together by both countries.
“Pakistan is in touch with India to finalise the date for foreign secretary-level talks in Islamabad”, Foreign Office spokesperson Syed Qazi Khalilullah said in a news briefing here.
Sharif’s statement also said that Pakistan was considering sending a special team to Pathankot to seek “additional information” to spur the investigation, adding the decision was being made in consultation with the Indian government.
India has long accused Pakistan of failing to crack down on militant groups that conduct cross-border attacks, including the organization it blames for 2008 strikes in Mumbai that left 166 people dead.
It is not clear if any action has been taken by Pakistan against Jaish-e-Mohammad’s two major seminaries in Bahawalpur, which many say serve as the group’s headquarters.
After his return to Pakistan, Maulana Azhar split with Harkatul Mujahideen in 2000 and formed his own militant outfit Jaish-i-Mohammad.
Although Pakistan did not name those arrested on Wednesday, Indian and Pakistani media reports said Masood Azhar was among those detained.
The attack took place a week after India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a stopover in Lahore to wish Nawaz Sharif on his birthday and attend his granddaughter’s wedding at Jati Umra.
However, the Express Tribune newspaper said in a joint dateline report from New Delhi and Islamabad that fixing the terms of reference will be extremely hard, presumably due to the negative atmospherics between the two countries.
Punjab provincial law minister Rana Sanaullah told AFP that a madrassa, or religious school, affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammad was raided and sealed off on Thursday, while a second one had already been shut down at the weekend.
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He said such a move would only be taken if it were proved “beyond doubt”. At the time, Pakistan refused to hand over Azhar to India. News of Wednesday’s arrests came ahead of a scheduled meeting between the foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan in Islamabad on January 15.
