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NIA team probing 26/11 attacks to visit Pak

by IANS
December 16, 2012 , 3 : 00 am

Briefing: Pakistan�s Interior Minister Rehman Malik talking to media in New Delhi. Pic: PTI

New Delhi: India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) probing the 26/11 attack is likely to visit Pakistan in mid-January while a Pakistani judicial panel could visit India next week, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik said as he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to press him to visit Pakistan and his native village.

"Whatever trust deficit was there, it was removed," he said of his talks with Indian leaders.

Malik, who also met National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon, sought to deflect the negative publicity evoked by his purported comparison of 2611 with Babri mosque's demolition and offered an investigation into the death of Kargil martyr Captain Saurabh Kalia.

Discussion
In an interview with NDTV news channel before his meeting with the prime minister, Malik said that the issue of judicial commission was discussed during his meeting with Indian Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde yesterday evening. "And yesterday we have worked out a way forward so that the (Pakistani) judicial commission may come next week," Malik said.

Malik, who arrived here on Friday on a three-day visit, said he has invited the NIA "in the middle of January".

"Let the director general of FIA (Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency) and NIA sit together and resolve issues," Malik said.

Shinde had raised the issue of the NIA team's visit during his meeting with Malik on the sidelines of the Saarc ministerial meeting in the Maldives in September. The NIA wants to go to Pakistan to examine material evidence against key masterminds and accused in the 2008 attacks that claimed 166 lives.

Commission
An eight-member Pakistani judicial commission had visited India in March following a bilateral agreement but did not cross-examine the witnesses.

It is expected to so during its next visit to the country and present its findings to the Pakistani court trying those accused of involvement in 2611 attacks.

Malik said his government was taking steps to expedite trial of the seven people, including Lakhvi, in a Rawalpindi court.

On LeT founder Hafiz Saeed, Malik said the Mumbai attacks mastermind had been bailed out thrice by the court and "we have been prohibited to arrest him, these are the orders of the high court".

Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik repeated his statement of Friday, asking India to provide "substantive evidence (against Saeed) that can stand the test of court".

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