NEW DELHI: Demanding an inquiry commission to determine why the 26/11 Mumbai carnage couldn’t be prevented and why it took so long to subdue the attackers, leader of the opposition L.K. Advani yesterday also asked that Parliament be given a copy of the dossier furnished to Pakistan to prove the involvement of its nationals in the assault — but the government rejected this outright.
“I believe that the 26/11 attack was a proxy war. The mastermind behind this attack, Hafiz Saeed, was released in the absence of concrete evidence. The evidence given by us to Pakistan should, therefore, be shared in Parliament,” Advani said in the Lok Sabha while participating in the debate on the president’s address Thursday to the joint session of Parliament.
Home Minister P. Chidambaram ruled out setting up any probe commission, saying it was surprising that such a demand was being made six months after the terror strike. “I don’t think there is a need for a Commission of Inquiry. We are not going to appoint it,” said Chidambaram.
“I am amused by that demand ... so far as the Mumbai attacks are concerned, we have all the facts. I have gone into all the records and we are quite clear on how it happened and I have shared it with the House,” he said.
“Besides, I would like to ask, did the NDA government appoint a commission of inquiry after Kandahar? Did they appoint a commission of inquiry after Parliament was attacked? I don’t think that these kind of statements are going to help the situation,” he added.
Citing lack of evidence, the Lahore High Court on Tuesday ordered the release of Jamaat-ud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, the suspected mastermind of the Mumbai attacks. More than 170 people were killed after 10 Pakistani terrorists attacked key spots in Mumbai Nov. 26-29, 2008. One gunman, Ajmal Amir Qasab was captured alive and is currently being tried in a Mumbai court.
Advani also suggested that the sharing of evidence with Parliament “will help the country and international community to apply pressure on Pakistan.”
“The center should set up a commission of inquiry to review the conclusions of Pradhan Committee... The country and Parliament should know what went wrong and where,” he contended. The R.D. Pradhan Committee was constituted by the Maharashtra government to inquire into lapses by the government and the police before and during the Mumbai assault.
However, Advani also called for a new beginning in government-opposition relations and said it was a possible to reach such a “common goal.”
“We (BJP) are in the opposition. Our number has been reduced to 116. But it is not a small number. Let it be a new beginning of government-opposition relations,” Advani said.
“Together we can see to it ... whatever we have. These ambitions should be realized in the 21st Century. That must be our common goal. It is quite possible to achieve this without difficulty,” he said Advani.
He also congratulated Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and leader of the house Pranab Mukherjee for the United Progressive Alliance’s victory in the Lok Sabha polls. During the course of the election campaign Advani had launched a tirade against Singh, slamming him as the “weakest” prime minister who had “devalued” the high office. He looked chastened now.
— With input from agencies
