Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari does not believe India’s demand to take action against JuD chief Hafiz Mohd Saeed, linked to Mumbai terror attacks, is a “major hurdle” and was hopeful that relations would be normalised soon between the two neighbours.
“I don’t think the issue of Hafiz Saeed is a major hurdle in the normalisation of our relations. I am hopeful that relations between the two countries will be restored very soon,” Mr. Zardari told PTI during an ‘Iftar’ function on Monday evening.
Mr. Zardari’s comments came ahead of the meetings of Foreign Ministers and Foreign Secretaries of the two countries on the sidelines of UN General Assembly session in New York.
India has accused Pakistan of not taking action to prosecute the 26/11 perpetrators despite 10 months having passed by.
Mr. Zardari said Pakistan is committed to fighting terrorism and no one should have any doubts about this.
“My government’s biggest achievement is flushing out extremists from the Malakand division and other areas and this move has the full backing of the people of Pakistan and all political forces,” he said.
Attorney General Latif Khosa, Pakistan’s senior-most legal official, earlier told PTI that the evidence provided by India is “not enough” to prosecute Saeed, whom New Delhi has described as the mastermind of the Mumbai attacks.
