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Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi's bail: India conveys its strong concerns to Pakistan

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 19, Dec 2014, 12:12 pm IST | UPDATED: 19, Dec 2014, 12:12 pm IST

Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi's bail: India conveys its strong concerns to Pakistan New Delhi: A day after a Rawalpindi anti-terrorism court granted bail to Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the key handler in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks case, India has conveyed its strong concerns and sentiments of people to Pakistan through diplomatic channels, MEA spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said.

The release of Lakhvi will make a mockery of Pakistan's commitment to fight terror groups without hesitation and without making distinctions, India has told Pakistan.

"Despite repeated assurances that have been received, we have seen both the prosecution of the seven accused in the anti-terror court in Islamabad, as also the investigation by the authorities into the larger conspiracy surrounding the Mumbai attack case, proceeding at a glacial pace.

"The story of repeated postponements, adjournments and unavailability of concerned law officers or witnesses is well documented and does not require repetition. The move to grant bail to Zakiur Rahman Lakhvi yesterday has taken this saga to another level," official spokesman in the external affairs ministry Syed Akbaruddin said.

"We have, therefore, forthwith communicated to Pakistan through diplomatic channels our strong concerns on this matter and the sentiments across the spectrum of Indian society that that this will make a mockery of Pakistan's commitment to fight terror groups without hesitation and without making distinctions," the spokesman said.

Lakhvi's bail came a day after India expressed full solidarity with Pakistan in the aftermath of the Peshawar massacre, and the court order led New Delhi to react strongly against the bail. The court said the charge-sheet against Lakhvi and other accused was flawed and lacking in evidence. The prosecutor did not say whether the government would appeal in a higher court against the court's bail order.

Sources said the Federal Investigation Agency, which had provided solid evidence to the court about LeT's involvement in the Mumbai attacks, disagreed with the bail but had to accept anti-terrorism court judge Kausar Abbas Zaidi's order.

The court directed Lakhvi, a trusted lieutenant of Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, to pay surety bonds worth Rs 5,00,000 ($5,000) before his release. Advocate Rizwan Abbasi had filed the bail application of the seven accused a day earlier, when lawyers across the country were on strike over the school carnage.

"We were not expecting this decision as we were still to produce a good number of witnesses in the case. We are awaiting the court's detailed order before giving further comment on the decision," said chief prosecutor Chaudhry Azhar. Lakhvi's counsel Raja Rizwan Abbasi told agencies that the court had granted bail as "evidence against Lakhvi was deficient".