India for UN sanctions on Maulana Masood Azhar

Even as additional Afghan forces have been deployed around the Indian consulate which was attacked on Wednesday in the Afghan city of Jalalabad by heavily-armed terrorists, India has now written to the chair of the UN “1267 Sanctions Committee” to include the name of Maulana Masood Azhar on the sanctions list.

The Indian envoy in the UN despatched the letter on February 26. India has argued that it is a great anomaly that the organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed is already listed on the sanctions list but not its leader Maulana Masood Azhar. New Delhi also argued that any half-hearted measures would result in nations being threatened by the grave danger of terrorism. India also hoped there would be “greater understanding” in the UN Sanctions Committee of the need to ban JeM chief Masood Azhar following the Pathankot terror strike, days after it moved the panel for a second time with the request as the first attempt was scuttled by China. The MEA said the request currently was being considered by the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED) for technical aspects. The CTED will take between 15-30 days to complete the process before India’s submission is taken up by the 15-member 1267 Sanctions Committee, he said. India will persuade China not to oppose its move this time, in view of the evidence in the wake of the Pathankot terror probe. So far as Wednesday’s terror attack in Jalalabad is concerned, while experts feel elements in Pakistan’s ISI may have masterminded it, MEA sources in New Delhi said that the Jalalabad terror attack probe had just begun and that it was too early to comment on whether there was any evidence so far to suggest a Pakistani hand behind it. Meanwhile, the government on Thursday stated before Parliament that Pakistan must fulfil its repeated assurances of not allowing its soil for “aiding and abetting” terrorism directed against India and asserted that it was committed to work towards a normal relationship with the neighbour.

Meanwhile, India has also asked Pakistan to inform it at least five days in advance about the visit by its joint investigation team (JIT) here in connection with the Pathankot terror attack, official sources said.

Pakistan has formed a five-member JIT to probe the Pathankot terror attack and it is expected to arrive in the country soon.