Kolkata, March 18 (IANS) Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit on Wednesday said the "hype" created over an Islamabad court ordering the release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi was "indirectly affecting" the judicial process in Pakistan.
Participating in an interactive programme here, the envoy asserted that Pakistan "has changed" in the last decade and called for having faith in its judiciary.
"There is a judicial process in Pakistan like any other democratic country. The prosecution is doing its best, I won't like to jump the gun."
"Even if he is granted bail, why create hype, the trial hasn't stopped. We would like the trial to end as soon as possible. Don't judge us from a narrow prism, Pakistan has changed a lot in the last decade," said Basit during a three-day visit to Kolkata.
"By creating this hype, which in my view is not called for, you are indirectly affecting the judicial process in Pakistan. Let the judicial process take its course, we are doing our best," said Basit, who was summoned by the Indian external affairs ministry after the court order.
The Islamabad High Court on March 13 struck down the detention order of Lakhvi, who is said to have overseen the 2008 Mumbai attack that left 166 Indians and foreigners dead and brought India and Pakistan close to war.
Lakhvi, however, continues to be in detention following an order by the home ministry of Pakistan's Punjab province.
The envoy also dispelled notions that Pakistan was intentionally going slow on the trial.
"It takes time because the crime scene was in India. We got all the evidence from India... there are so many gaping holes... but I would not enter into that debate."
"Don't draw premature conclusions, terrorism is a huge problem for us. You may have your 26/11 but we have these almost daily," said Basit, adding that terrorism had destroyed the social and economic fabric of Pakistan.
The envoy insisted that India should have agreed to Pakistan's proposal for a joint investigation into the Mumbai attack.
Basit refused to comment on the recent release of Kashmiri separatist leader Masrat Alam.
"I won't like to comment on that because there are divergent views on this. So far as I get to know from media reports, the legal position was such that he could not be put behind bars anymore," said Basit.
Chairman of the Muslim League, a constituent of Syed Ali Shah Geelani-led Hurriyat Conference, Alam was convicted for organising anti-India protests resulting in the death of 112 people in the Kashmir Valley in 2010.
He was released from Baramulla prison following the new Jammu and Kashmir government's policy to free political prisoners who do not face criminal charges.
Brij Bhushan Singh: 25 people testified against Brij Bhushan Singh, with only photo as evidence, no video found
25 people have testified against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. These include the victim wrestler, international wrestler Bajrang Punia, two
Second vaccine for children: Covaxin trial continues, AIIMS director said - Pfizer vaccine can also be given to children
Trials of Covaxin are ongoing on children aged 2 to 18 years. Meanwhile, the hopes of getting another vaccine for children soon have increased. AIIMS Director Dr. Randeep Guleria has said that
Delhiites are worried about the heavy crowd in a long queue for liquor, crowds over contracts as soon as lockdown is announced, women bid - benefits of liquor
After the Corona infection reached its peak in the country's capital, the Delhi government has announced a lockdown for six days from ten o'clock tonight. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced the
'Neither ED's raid, nor Assam CM' Jairam Ramesh compared Bihari politics with Maharashtra
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh compared the political changes in Bihar to Maharashtra. He targeted the Bharatiya Janata Party regarding the political condition of both states. Ramesh said that
CTET 2024: Another chance to register for CTET July, the deadline extended till this day; apply soon
CTET July 2024: The Central Board of Secondary Education has extended the last date for submission of application forms for the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET 2024). Candidates wishing to
Center's guideline regarding monkeypox: 21 days of isolation and covering of wounds required; Tender floated to make vaccine
Because of the increasing cases of monkeypox in the country, the central government has issued necessary guidelines. These include 21 days of isolation, covering the wounds, and wearing a triple-layer
Chinese spy who shook America through LinkedIn
Jun Wei Yeo, an ambitious and recently enrolled Ph.D. student from Singapore, became extremely happy when he was invited to present a presentation in Beijing in 2015 in China. His doctoral research
World Bank: Improvement in India's GDP growth rate forecast for 2022-23, but a big decline compared to the previous financial year
A major decline in gross domestic product (GDP) growth is expected in FY 2022-23 as compared to the previous year amid a deteriorating external environment. According to the estimates of the World
Mukesh Ambani's salary is 1.25 crores/month, wife Nita Ambani's is so much
Mukesh Ambani is a well-known industrialist of the country and the world. He is the chairman of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). RIL is consistently performing well. According to the data on Sunday,
Pushed the woman in front of the train: The driver saved his life by applying the emergency brake of the metro train, the incident was captured on the CCTV camera
A heartbreaking incident has happened in Brussels, the capital of Belgium. Here at the metro station, a freak man pushed a woman from the platform on the track in front of a moving metro train.
