NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD, 17 May — Pakistan arrested the founder of an outlawed militant group linked to a bloody attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir this week as India weighed an “appropriate response”.
Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, former leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group, was taken into custody under laws that allow for suspects to be detained on suspicion of planning to create unrest, police said.
The arrest, also confirmed by Lashkar spokesman Yahya Mujahid, came after Indian Home Minister Lal Krishna Advani accused the group of involvement in the attack in Kashmir on Tuesday that killed 34 people. Pakistani security officials said Saeed had been detained for interrogation about his links to other radical groups but the move was not connected to Tuesday’s Kashmir attack.
Indian ministers, army and security chiefs met to discuss New Delhi’s reply to the attack on the army camp. The Home (Interior) Ministry later said the government would announce its response to the raid in Parliament today.
Most analysts said New Delhi was weighing risks of a limited strike, most likely at secessionist bases across the Line of Control dividing Indian and Pakistani forces in Kashmir. “I would not rule it (a limited strike) out in the coming four months. The weather is clear. Between now and the end of September is the crucial period,” former Indian Foreign Secretary J.N. Dixit said.
Few think India would risk a large-scale attack against Pakistan, which has not ruled out using nuclear weapons to defend itself from a conventional assault.
The high-level official meeting came as the United States kept up pressure on India and Pakistan to avoid a conflict and reiterated its support for India in fighting terrorism.
On Wednesday President George W. Bush branded the raid a “terrorist attack”. Yesterday Robert Blackwill, US ambassador to India, met with Advani. “Terrorism against India is as unacceptable,” Blackwill said after the meeting. Advani earlier criticized Western nations for continuing economic aid to Pakistan. “There’s deep anger in India toward Pakistan but also disappointment toward these Western countries,” he said.
