New Delhi, Jan 05: Rejecting the theory of
"non-state actors" carrying out the Mumbai terror attack
independently, India on Monday hinted at the involvement of
elements in Pakistani establishment in the deadly strike which
claimed over 200 lives.
"It is hard to believe that something of this scale that
took so long in preparation and of this nature that amounts to
a commando attack could occur without anybody, anywhere in the
establishment knowing this was happening," Foreign Secretary
Shiv Shankar Menon told a press conference.
"This beggars my imagination. Wherever the investigations
leads us, we fill follow," he said.
However, Menon did not name any organisation of the
Pakistani establishment.
The Foreign Secretary said the distinction made by
Islamabad between non-state and state actors was "almost
impossible to believe".
He said India was of the view that there is nothing
called non-state actors and even such elements "function
within a state".
"I don't think there is anything called non-state
actors. After all they also live within a state and they are
the responsibility of the state. We find the distinction
between non-state actors and state actors hard to believe",
Menon said.
The relations between terror group Lashkar-e- Taiba
(LeT), which India believes is behind the gory attacks in the
western metropolis, and Pakistani intelligence agency ISI in
the past was "well known", he noted.
Sources said India has sought extradition of LeT
commanders Zakirur Rehman Lakhvi and Zarar Shah along with
some others who could be associated with ISI.
Bureau Report
First Published: Monday, January 05, 2009, 00:00