India warns JuD chief Hafiz Saeed over 'Kashmir jihad' remarks

Reuters photo

NEW DELHI: India on Friday warned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed to be prepared for a "resounding response" as he pledged to continue "jihad" in Jammu and Kashmir after a Pakistani court ended his 10 months of house arrest.

The statement Saeed made after his release in Lahore was a "re-articulation of the agenda of terrorist constituency", a Home Ministry official here said. 

"The principal and consistent stand of the government of India is that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. Recent statements of Saeed are simply a re-articulation of the agenda of terrorist constituency which thrives across the border," the official said.

"Such statements have been made repeatedly in the past and each time they have received an appropriate and resounding response on the ground from the people as well as law enforcement agencies," said the official without elaborating. 

Saeed, who carries a $10 million bounty announced by the US for his role in terror activities, made the comment to supporters gathered outside his Lahore residence. 

"Just as I am free today, Kashmir will also be free one day," Saeed said after midnight Thursday. "It is because of Kashmir that India has been after me. I pray to Allah to give us strength so that we keep fighting for Kashmir's independence (from India)."