THOUGH hopes had been raised in India after sufficient evidence was given by the country against Jamat-Ul-Dawa Chief Hafiz Syed for his role in Mumbai terror attacks, there has been lack of meaningful action so far. Clearly, Pakistan is not sincere and its intentions are doubtful. Given Islamabad’s failure to keep its promise to bring the masterminds behind 26/11 to justice almost a year after the terrible bloodbath, JuD Chief’s confinement cannot be construed as a meaningful step towards cracking down on terror emanating from Pakistani soil. Cosmetic action in the face of relentless pressure from New Delhi to do more to nab the culprits will not end terrorism and prevent the next attack. What comes out clearly is that there is no visible effort on the part of Pakistan to go after those involved in Mumbai and play the ball. It is therefore, not surprising that External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna has demanded decisive action against Hafiz Muhammad Syed while accusing Pakistan of camouflaging the issue. “We want Syed to be tried for the Mumbai attack. They are trying to camouflage the whole idea to suit themselves so India cannot be lulled into some kind of satisfaction that they are proceeding against them. We can see through the game”, Mr. Krishna told the Wall Street Journal on the sidelines of the United Nation’s General Assembly Session in New York a few days back.

Incidentally, the External Affairs Minister’s remarks come close on the heels of Pakistan premier Yousuf Raza Gilani’s statement that Syed “is in custody”, though it was not clear whether he was arrested or not. The founder of the LeT was earlier charged by the Lahore police for making provocative speeches but it was later clarified that it is in his own security interest. “He has been arrested. We are ready to co-operate with India and want to solve all the issues existing. We will not allow any terrorists to use Pakistani soil for their activities.” Mr. Gilani is said to have commented at the UN General Assembly Session. But some reports pointing to Hafiz Syed’s presence at an iftaar gathering hosted by the Pakistan Army’s 10th corps a few days back is indication enough that there may not be any major action against the JuD boss. Obviously, this is a clear sign that Pakistan is unwilling to bring Syed to book. The other conclusion that can be drawn from Mr. Gilani’s claims is that he wanted to placate Washington which had been putting pressure on Islamabad to act on Syed. Therefore, the Pakistani’s PM’s statement carries no credibility as Islamabad has merely restricted Syed’s movements and also no formal charges have been brought against him.

The optimism that the LeT’s oral “house arrest” would suggest that justice is at least being done is entirely misplaced. There is no need to jump to the conclusion that this cosmetic action of Pakistan against “non state actors” will convince India that it has initiated action against the perpetrators of 26/11 massacre in Mumbai. First of all, going by the contents of the first information reports, the case that has been made out against Mr. Syed is very weak. Then again, it is not clear whether he has been arrested or not. Despite Interior Minister Rehman Malik’s announcement that the LeT boss was under investigation for the 26/11 attacks, one cannot say if the case will go any further. What however is cause for concern is the fact that just ahead of Sharm-el-Sheikh Summit, the Pakistan Government challenged the Lahore High Court’s order releasing the JuD leader from house arrest. No less important is the fact that the recent action against Hafeez Syed has come before the foreign secretaries and foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan are scheduled to meet on the sidelines of UN General Assembly in New York. This shows Pakistan’s lack of seriousness in fighting terrorism on its soil. It also strengthens the perception that ISI continues to have links with LeT, as indicated by Pak Army’s hobnobbing with the banned JuD Chief. It needs no reiteration that Pakistani establishment has for long been sponsoring terror activities against India and ISI support to LeT, responsible for Mumbai attacks, still continues. So, Syed’s “house arrest” can no way be seen as a crackdown on terror network of JuD as it still continues to run operations under a new name. The Home Affairs Minister Mr. Chidambaram has rightly demanded that the Chief conspirator in Mumbai carnage must be tried for his involvement.

Having said that, Pakistan is hardly serious about combating terror on its soil. By continuing to hope that it will help India to bring the perpetrators of 26/11 to book, New Delhi is only fooling itself. Islamabad continues down the old track of denial and disagreement when it comes to taking action against the terror outfits active on its soil and India’s demand for handing over wanted fugitives. It therefore comes as no surprise that 10 new terror training camps have come into existence post 26/11. The country now boasts of 62 such camps in Pakistan occupied Kashmir and other places. There was also a record increase in infiltration attempt by Pak based terrorists during the first six months of this year. This fact has been validated by the Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor who confirmed that cross border infiltration into J&K has been showing an upward trend and attempts are being made to push in as many terrorists as possible from Pakistan. “Let me put it this way that this period is critical as we have a peaceful Valley. Attempts will be made from across the border to try and disrupt that and push in as many as possible before the winter sets in”, Mr. Kapoor is reported to have said.

Given the continued silence maintained by Pakistan authorities on Hafeez Syed’s involvement in 26/11′ it would not be premature to cautiously welcome the latest token action which will not have any effect on the ground realities in Pakistan as far as India in concerned. Indeed, Pakistan’s negative approach towards India over terror suspects linked to Mumbai attacks may prove to be another setback for relations between the two countries. It is for the same reason that Mr. Krishna has voiced skepticism over the outcome of his upcoming meeting with Mr. Qureshi. “I don’t think an atmosphere of trust would have been created between India and Pakistan to proceed with a meaningful dialogue,” he is reported to have said.

India has repeated the mistake it has made in the past also by delivering threats it can not implement. “I hope there won’t be any attacks, but if there is an attack on India, India is prepared to meet it,” External Affairs Minister is reported to have said hinting that the country will not show restraint next time it is attacked. It is common knowledge that Pakistan has time and again pledged not to allow the use of its territory for attacks on its neighbours. But every time it fell short of implementation. India needs to understand that mere talks will not bring about a change in the thinking of political and military leadership. It needs to keep on increasing international pressure on Pakistan. Islamabad must be forced to honour its earlier commitment of not allowing any terrorist activity from its soil.

The U.S also needs to urge Pakistan to take concrete action against the Mumbai attackers. It is high time that Islamabad be judged through its actions and not through promises.
SUNITA VAKIL