Pakistan will cooperate with India in tackling militancy, assures Rehman Malik

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Saturday said that Pakistan will assist India in tackling militancy and take credible action against perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
Malik said this after his meeting with visiting Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram in Islamabad.
“Information has been supplied to us in form of dossiers. I will send it to the investigators, and whoever are found guilty and if somebody is involved, I will definitely take action. There is no question about it,” Malik said.
“We are not there to create any hurdle into investigations, rather we will assist and cooperate with India as India has extended hand of friendship. We accept it and we have also extended hand of friendship. We both have to work together against the terrorists,” he added.

Malik further refuted allegations that Pakistan was creating hurdles in the judicial procedure in the prosecution of the suspected terrorists.

“Can you pressurize the courts? Our judiciary is very independent and therefore I have been time and again requesting my Indian friends, particularly from media, that whatever the decision comes form India we welcome with full heart. We expect that whatever decision comes from Pakistani courts, that should be accepted,” he added.

On demands made by Pakistan for the extradition of Mumbai attack’s lone survivor, Ajmal Kasab, Malik admitted that it is not possible and other options were being looked into.

“So there are two options, one is that the Indian magistrate comes to Pakistan and testify that statement. We have the alternate, we went to the single bench, single bench said that he can’t be declared a PO (proclaimed offender) because of the fact that he is already arrested and now he is being convicted, so you ask for extradition,” Malik said.

“We have gone to the double bench requesting to have him declared a PO, and we hope to have this relief and if this relief is not there, we will go back to our new friends and try to find out other solutions. But that does not mean that there is any lapse on the part of the government and we are slowing the speed. It is the system that we have to follow and we should respect our legal system,” he added.

Chidambaram arrived in Islamabad on Friday to attend the two-day meet of the Home Ministers of eight-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

The meeting between Chidambaram and Malik is a sign of the revival of bilateral talks between India and Pakistan, which had been suspended in the aftermath of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

This is the first ministerial visit from India to Pakistan since the Mumbai 26/11 attack. (ANI)